Copper oxide supported on four different types of mesoporous silica (SBA-15, MCM-41, MCM-48 and KIT-6) were prepared and examined for catalytic reduction of NO with CO in the temperature range of 250-500 degrees C. Their structural and chemical properties were characterized by N-2 adsorption, low angle and wide angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). FTIR and temperature programmed reduction (TPR). H-2-TPR revealed that MCM-41 and SBA-15 tend to possess a higher quantity of reducible copper species in contrast to MCM-48 and KIT-6. CuO supported on MCM-41 and SBA-15 exhibited higher activity in catalytic reduction of NO than CuO supported on MCM-48 and KIT-6. The superior catalytic activity was attributed to homogeneous dispersion of CuO and availability of the reducible copper ions in the channels of mesoporous materials. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.