Completely metallic oxidation catalyst

A completely-metallic catalyst for the oxidization of mixtures containing carbon monoxide and/or hydrocarbons and/or soot in the gaseous phase, the catalyst being obtainable through an oxidizing thermal treatment of an alloy that may contain manganese, nickel, copper, chromium and iron in an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a temperature of 250 to 1250° C. for 0.05 to 5 hours, and a subsequent treatment with an oxidizable, organic substance, characterized in that an alloy containing at least three of the following elements:

• manganese, nickel, copper, cobalt, chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, titanium, zirconium, vanadium, niobium, aluminum and iron with a total content of at least 95 mass percent, and up to 5 mass percent of P, N, Si and S and other typical contaminations, the alloy being subjected to an oxidizing thermal treatment in an oxygen-containing atmosphere;
• after cooling, the alloy is treated with an aqueous solution or emulsion containing an oxidizable, organic substance, with the surface and/or regions near the surface of the alloy being doped with one of the following elements:
• boron, aluminum, indium, germanium, tin, lead, scandium, yttrium, lanthanum, titanium, zirconium, vanadium, niobium, chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, manganese, technetium, rhenium, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper, cerium, praseodymium or neodymium;
• and the alloy is subsequently subjected to a second thermal treatment in an oxygen-containing atmosphere over a period of 5 min. to 3 hrs at a temperature of 250 to 1250° C.