Steam-promoted Methane-CO2 reforming by NiPdCeOx@SiO2 nanoparticle clusters for syngas production

Abstract

We demonstrate a facile aerosol-based approach to fabricate hybrid nanostrcutures, NiPdOx-CeO2 nanoparticles deposited on the SiO2 nanoparticle clusters, for the catalysis of steam-promoted CO2 reforming with methane. Ultrafine crystallites of active metal and promoter (≈5 nm) are created with tunable cluster sizes and chemical compositions. A superior catalytic performance achieves at low temperature (550 °C): remarkable turnover frequency (≈2 s−1), tunable H2/CO ratio (1.1–1.9) and high 100-h operation stability. Incorporation of SiO2 nanoparticle cluster as support material increases dispersion of active metals and suppresses metal sintering during material synthesis and catalysis. Hybridization with Pd significantly improves the activity of Ni-based catalyst especially ≤600 °C. Addition of steam suppresses the coke formation by > 10 times. The work demonstrates a prototype study of developing bimetallic hybrid nanocatalysts homogeneously dispersed with promoter on the NPC mesoporous support by design, showing promise for the syngas production via synergistic catalysis of methane-CO2 reforming.