Investigation of the catalytic performance and coke formation of nanocrystalline Ni/SrO-Al2O3 catalyst in dry reforming of methane

In this study, nickel catalysts supported on mesoporous nanocrystalline gamma alumina promoted by various strontium contents were prepared by the impregnation method and employed in dry reforming of methane (DRM). The prepared catalysts were characterized using N2 adsorption (BET), temperature-programmed reduction and oxidation (TPR,) and oxidation (TPDTPO), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. TPR analysis revealed that the increases in Sr content enhanced the reducibility of the catalysts. The obtained results indicated that increasing Sr content increased both the methane and carbon dioxide conversions. In addition, the CO2 conversion was higher than the CH4 conversion due to the occurrence of the reverse water gas shift reaction. Among the studied catalysts, Ni/10% Sr-Al2O3 exhibited the highest catalytic activity and the lowest carbon formation. This catalyst showed high stability without any decrease in methane conversion up to 12 h of reaction. The results of this study could be employed in developing an industrial catalyst for the dry reforming reaction.