Additively Manufactured Geopolymer Monoliths as Robust Supports for High Temperature Catalytic Reactions
Rafael Vidal Eleutério1, Lisandro Simão2, Maíra Palm3
1Graduate Program in Materials Science and Engineering (PGMAT), Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), 88040-900 Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
ACS Omega
|January 26, 2026
Summary
3D-printed geopolymers offer robust thermal and mechanical stability for extreme environments. These advanced materials demonstrate excellent performance as catalytic supports in high-temperature applications like methane steam reforming.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Additive Manufacturing
Background:
- Additively manufactured geopolymers offer unique thermal and mechanical properties.
- Applications in extreme environments require resilient materials.
Purpose of the Study:
- To fabricate porous geopolymer monoliths using material extrusion (MEX).
- To assess printability and thermal stability of 3D-printed geopolymers.
- To validate their use as catalytic supports for high-temperature reactions.
Main Methods:
- Material extrusion (MEX) of metakaolin-based pastes.
- Rheological assessment of precursor paste printability.
- Calcination at 800 °C and characterization of structural integrity.
- Nickel (Ni) impregnation and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR-H2) analysis.
- Methane steam reforming (MSR) reaction testing at 800-900 °C.
Main Results:
- Successfully fabricated porous geopolymer monoliths with 70% porosity.
- 3D-printed structures maintained mechanical integrity after 800 °C calcination.
- Strong metal-support interactions and stable nickel aluminosilicate phases were observed.
- Ni-geopolymer catalysts showed stable performance in MSR for 2 hours without deactivation.
Conclusions:
- 3D-printed geopolymers exhibit superior thermal stability compared to cast counterparts.
- The geopolymer matrix enhances interfacial stabilization of metal catalysts.
- These materials are promising as thermally stable, engineered supports for high-temperature catalysis.
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