Enhanced sulfur‐resistant methanation performance over MoO3–ZrO2 catalyst prepared by solution combustion method

Abstract

Sulfur‐resistant methanation of syngas was studied over MoO3–ZrO2 catalysts at 400°C. The MoO3–ZrO2 solid‐solution catalysts were prepared using the solution combustion method by varying MoO3 content and temperature. The 15MoO3–ZrO2 catalyst achieved the highest methanation performance with CO conversion up to 80% at 400°C. The structure of ZrO2 and dispersed MoO3 species was characterized using X‐ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The energy‐dispersive spectrum of the 15MoO3–ZrO2 catalyst showed that the solution combustion method gave well‐dispersed MoO3 particles on the surface of ZrO2. The structure of the catalysts depends on the Mo surface density. It was observed that in the 15MoO3–ZrO2 catalyst the Mo surface density of 4.2 Mo atoms nm−2 approaches the theoretical monolayer capacity of 5 Mo atoms nm−2. The addition of a small amount of MoO3 to ZrO2 led to higher tetragonal content of ZrO2 along with a reduction of particle size. This leads to an efficient catalyst for the low‐temperature CO methanation process.