Production of hydrogen via steam reforming of acetic acid over Ni and Co supported on La2O3 catalyst

Nickel (Ni)-cobalt (Co) supported on lanthanum (III) oxide (La2O3) catalyst was prepared via impregnation technique to study the steam reformation of acetic acid for hydrogen generation by using one-step fixed bed reactor. Moreover, in order to specify the physical and the chemical attributes of the catalyst, X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen physisorption, temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia and carbon dioxide (TPD-NH3 and CO2), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) methods were employed. The nitrogen physisorption analysis showed that the presence of Co on Ni/La2O3 improved the textural properties of the catalyst by increasing the surface area, the pore diameter and the pore volume of the catalyst. This improved the dispersion of metal particle and caused a reduction in the size of metal particle, and consequently, increased the catalytic activity, as well as the resistance to coke formation. On top of that, the condensation and the dehydration reactions during acetic acid steam reforming created carbon deposition on acidic site of the catalyst, which resulted in the deactivation of catalyst and the formation of coke. Besides, in this study, Ni/La2O3 contributed to a high acetic acid conversion (100%) at 700 °C, but it produced more coking compared to Ni-Co/La2O3 and Co/La2O3 catalysts.