Hydrogen production by aqueous phase reforming of phenol derived from lignin pyrolysis over NiCe/ZSM-5 catalysts

Incipient wetness impregnation was used to synthesized the NiCe/ZSM-5 catalysts with different ratio of Ni:Ce, and CeO2 was added as an assistant in the synthesis process. The physicochemical properties of the prepared catalysts were characterized by Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2-Sorption, H2 temperature programmed reduction (H2-TPR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier Transform infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-Vis DR). The catalytic activities of the obtained catalysts were tested by using the reaction of aqueous phase reforming of phenol to produce hydrogen. Adding appropriate doze of Ce to the catalysts can increase the dispersion of nickel on the ZSM-5 support. The results showed that hydrogen selectivity was higher over 8Ni8Ce/ZSM-5 than using 8Ni/ZSM-5 as aqueous phase reforming catalysts. The content of carbon monoxide in the products after reaction over different catalysts was very low. However, the dispersion of carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons was significantly different over the two catalysts.