Aqueous-phase reforming of the low-boiling fraction of rice husk pyrolyzed bio-oil in the presence of platinum catalyst for hydrogen production

Aqueous-phase reforming (APR) of the low-boiling fraction (LBF) of bio-oil from rice husk pyrolysis was investigated over Pt/Al2O3 for hydrogen production. The influence of reaction temperature (503–563 K), reaction time (1–4 h), different load of organics in water (3–12 wt.%) and catalyst amounts (0.25–1 g) were studied. The hydrogen content of the gas products reached 65 vol.% at 533 K for 4 h with a feedstock of 9.6 g LBF and 30 mL water in the presence of 0.5 g of 2 wt.% Pt/Al2O3. APR is a promising method to make use of the organics in LBF of bio-oil to produce hydrogen.

► The low-boiling fraction of rice husk pyrolytic bio-oil was used for hydrogen production.
► Hydrogen content of the gas products can be as high as 65 vol.%.
► Reaction temperature is about 400 K lower than that applied in steam Reforming.
► Aqueous-phase reforming is a promising method to utilize organics in low-boiling fraction of the bio-oil to produce hydrogen.