To develop and apply new type catalyst is an effective route for reducing the NOx emission. The catalytic reduction of NO by H-2 without O-2 could be used as a model reaction for the evaluation of a given catalyst. Cobalt doped nanoporous nickel phosphate VSB-5 is a recently developed catalyst and is firstly applied to catalytically reduce NO by H-2 in the absence of O-2. NO can be catalytic reduced by H-2 on the prepared samples. The catalytic performance has close relations with the amount of doped cobalt and enhanced catalytic performance has been observed on cobalt substituted samples. Large amount of NO could be adsorbed on the surface of Co-VSB-5 which works as the active component during the catalytic process. Accordingly, a reaction mechanism is also proposed. The prepared catalyst may have potential application in the de-NOx process. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.