A comparison study on carbon dioxide reforming of methane over Ni catalysts supported on mesoporous SBA-15, MCM-41, KIT-6 and gamma-Al2

The activity of Ni supported on mesoporous SBA-15, MCM-41, KIT-6, and a sol-gel prepared Ni/g-Al2O3, for catalysing methane dry reforming was investigated. . The chemical and physical characteristics of the catalysts before and after catalytic testing were investigated using X-Ray diffraction, X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy / Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis, Thermogravimeteric Analysis, Temperature Programmed Reduction techniques and N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms. The type and nature of support displayed significant influence on catalytic activity and stability. Among all the supported catalysts tested, the Ni/SBA-15 exhibited excellent catalytic performance in terms of catalytic conversion and long-term stability. The activity for the silica framework catalysts correlated strongly with the surface area and pore diameter of these materials with the degree of CH4 and CO2 conversions observed increasing with decreasing surface area and increasing pore diameter