Effect of granulation on the activity and stability of a Co–Al2O3 aerogel catalyst in a fluidized-bed reactor for CH4–CO2 reforming

Abstract

A Co–Al2O3 aerogel catalyst, which was prepared via a sol–gel process followed by supercritical drying, was granulated to improve the fluidization quality. This showed that the fluidization of the aerogel catalyst could be considerably improved by granulation. The effect of granulation on the activity and the stability of the aerogel catalyst was investigated in a fluidized-bed reactor in the CH4–CO2 reforming reaction. It was found that granulation can significantly improve the catalytic performance of the aerogel catalyst, e.g. the granulated aerogel catalyst showed a much better catalytic stability and greater conversion of methane as compared with the non-granulated aerogel catalyst. The improved catalytic performance of this granulated catalyst was attributed to the better fluidization quality in the fluidized-bed reactor.