Effects of CO2 content on the activity and stability of nickel catalyst supported on mesoporous nanocrystalline zirconia

The effects of carbon dioxide content on the catalytic performance and coke formation of nickel catalyst supported on mesoporous nanocrystalline zirconia with high surface area and pure tetragonal crystalline phase were investigated in methane reforming with carbon dioxide. The samples were characterized by XRD, BET, TPR, TPO, TPH, TEM, and SEM techniques. The catalyst prepared showed high surface area and a mesoporous structure with a narrow pore size distribution. The obtained results revealed that the increase in CO2 content increased the methane conversion and stability of the catalyst and significantly reduced the coke deposition. The TPH analysis showed that several species of carbon with different reactivities toward hydrogenation were deposited on the spent catalysts employed under different CO2 contents.