Autothermal reforming of propane over Ni-based hydrotalcite catalysts

Ni-based hydrotalcite catalysts were investigated for ATR of propane in a fixed-bed flow reactor. The reactions were carried out with a H2O/C/O2 stream ratio of 3/1/0.73 at temperatures ranging from 300 to 700 degrees C. The solvents used in the manufacture of Ni-based catalysts noble metal/Ni/MgAl catalysts or substituted active material were changed in order to decrease the level of catalyst deactivation. The use of a mixture of ethanol and water during the formation of the Pd-Ni/MgAl catalyst produced a higher hydrogen yield than that using water only. In addition, the use of acetone in the synthesis of Ru-Ni/MgAl catalyst produced a higher hydrogen yield than using water only. This shows that the solvents used for the noble metals affect the degree of dispersion and particle size of the nickel and prevented carbon deposition resulting in the enhanced hydrogen selectivity and catalyst activity. Active metals were substituted during the preparation of hydrotalcite catalysts. Among the catalysts prepared with various ratio (Ni:Fe) tested at high temperature, the ratio, Ni:Fe = 75:25, showed best performance. There was less sintering of Ni particles due to substitution of the active metal at the optimal ratio.