Synthesis and characterization of highly ordered Ni-MCM-41 mesoporous molecular sieves

Highly ordered Ni-MCM-41 samples with nearly atomically dispersed nickel ions were prepared reproducibly and characterized. Similar to the Co-MCM-41 samples, the pore diameter and porosity can be precisely controlled by changing the synthesis surfactant chain length. Nickel was incorporated by isomorphous substitution of silicon in the MCM-41 silica framework, which makes the Ni-MCM-41 a physically stable catalyst in harsh reaction conditions such as CO disproportionation to single wall carbon nanotubes or CO2 methanation. X-ray absorption spectroscopy results indicate that the overall local environment of nickel in Ni-MCM-41 was a tetrahedral or distorted tetrahedral coordination with surrounding oxygen anions. Hydrogen TPR revealed that our Ni-MCM-41 samples have high stability against reduction; however, compared to Co-MCM-41, the Ni-MCM-41 has a lower reduction temperature, and both the H2-TPR and in situ XANES TPR reveal that the reducibility of nickel is not clearly correlated with the pore radius of curvature, as in the case of Co-MCM-41. This is probably a result of nickel being thermodynamically more easily reduced than cobalt. The stability of the structural order of Ni-MCM-41 has been investigated under SWNT synthesis and CO2 methanation reaction conditions as both require catalyst exposure to reducing environments leading to formation of metallic Ni clusters. Nitrogen physisorption and XRD results show that structural order was maintained under both SWNT synthesis and CO2 methanation reaction conditions. EXAFS results demonstrate that the nickel particle size can be controlled by different prereduction temperatures but not by the pore radius of curvature as in the case of Co-MCM-41.