Ni/Al–Mg–O solids modified with Co or Cu for the catalytic steam reforming of bio-oil

Abstract An environmentally friendly method of producing a hydrogen rich gas is the catalytic steam reforming of bio-oil. This requires the development of a catalyst appropriate for the process. In the present work, five different research catalysts have been prepared and tested. A Ni/AlMg catalyst was selected as a reference. Modifications to the catalyst were studied, incorporating Co or Cu by coprecipitation or by incipient wetness impregnation. The experiments took place at 650 °C and atmospheric pressure in a fixed bed and in a fluidized bed reactor, using an aqueous fraction (S/C = 7.6 mol H2O/mol C) of pine sawdust bio-oil. A spatial time (W/morg) of 4 g catalyst min/g organics and an u/umf ratio of 10 (in fluidized bed) were used. In both reactors, the coprecipitated NiCo/AlMg catalyst showed the best performance. Over a period of 2 h, 0.138 g H2/g organics and 80% carbon conversion to gas were obtained in the fixed bed reactor. The catalyst deactivation rate was higher when the steam reforming took place in the fixed bed reactor, although the initial H2 and CO2 yields were higher. In contrast, the stability of the catalysts was higher in the fluidized bed reactor. Elemental analysis, FESEM and TPO analyses of some of the catalysts revealed a relationship between their stability and the quantity and characteristics of the coke deposited on their surface.

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