Hydrogen and/or syngas from steam reforming of glycerol. Study of platinum catalysts

In the present work, Pt catalysts prepared on different supports were evaluated in order to apply them in the steam reforming of glycerol reaction to obtain hydrogen and/or synthesis gas at temperatures lower than 450 °C. A strong support effect on the behavior of catalysts was determined.The presence of intermediate products allowed to propose a scheme of reactions that would explain the results obtained at different space times and temperatures studied.Materials with acid properties demonstrated low activity to gaseous products, with formation of lateral products due to dehydration and condensation reactions, which would lead to coke formation and to a fast catalyst deactivation. On the contrary, the catalyst prepared with a support with neutral properties permitted to obtain a catalyst with excellent activity levels to gaseous products, high selectivity to H2, and a very well stability in time.