Ni/SBA-15 Catalysts for combined steam methane reforming and water gas shift—Prepared for use in catalytic membrane reactors

• Distribution and interaction between Ni and support define the catalyst performance.
• The highest catalytic performance was obtained for a Ni loading of 25 wt.%.
• SBA-15 prepared by SMG and HTM are good supports for Ni catalyst.
• Ni/SBA-15 SGM catalyst can be employed for the development of catalyst hollow fibre.

This study focuses on the preparation, characterization and catalytic performance evaluation of Ni/SBA-15 catalysts for the combined steam methane reforming (SMR) and water gas shift (WGS) reaction. Specific efforts have been directed towards the impact of the SBA-15 preparation methods on further incorporating the resultant catalysts into the micro-structured ceramic hollow fibres for the development of more advanced membrane reactors. The effect of Ni loading (5–25 wt.%) on the catalytic performance was investigated using the SBA-15 prepared via a sol–gel method. Furthermore, the effect of SBA-15 preparation methods (sol–gel and hydrothermal methods) on the catalyst properties and performance were also systematically investigated in a packed-bed reactor, using a fixed Ni loading of 25 wt.%. For the purpose of comparison, a commercially available SBA-15 powder was also employed. Apart from the different distribution and particle size of Ni, the interaction between Ni and SBA-15 is considered as the major reason for the difference in catalytic performance.

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