Hydrogen production by water–gas shift reaction over bimetallic Cu–Ni catalysts supported on La-doped mesoporous ceria

Water–gas shift reaction was investigated over a series of Ni, Cu and Cu–Ni bimetallic catalysts supported on La-doped mesoporous ceria. The catalysts were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-temperature XRD (HTXRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption analysis, and H2 temperature-programmed reduction (TPR). Combined results of powder XRD, HTXRD and TPR studies provided evidence of the formation of CuNi alloys in the CuNi/CeLaOx bimetallic catalysts. The catalytic activity of supported Cu–Ni catalysts was evaluated in the water–gas shift (WGS) reaction at 150–400 °C. The effects of the Cu/Ni ratio on the physicochemical properties and the catalytic performance were examined. The presence of copper in bimetallic catalysts resulted in suppression of undesirable methanation side-reaction, while the Ni component was important for high WGS activity. These findings strongly suggested that the bimetallic Cu–Ni compositions are highly promising as WGS catalysts.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload high-quality image (65 K)Download as PowerPoint slideResearch highlights▶ The WGS reaction was investigated for supported Cu, Ni and bimetallic Cu–Ni catalysts at 150–400 °C. ▶ Cu prevented Ni from sintering due to strong metal–metal interactions in the CuNi system ▶ Cu4Ni16 catalyst showed high WGS activity and strong inhibition of methane formation.