Autothermal reforming of methane to syngas using co-precipitated Ni−(La2O3)x−(ZrO2)1−x catalyst

Two different catalysts, Ni−(ZrO2) and Ni−(La2O3)0.1−(ZrO2)0.9, were synthesized to use as catalysts in the autothermal reforming of methane. Ni−(ZrO2) catalyst without lanthanum prepared in this study has a good initial performance, but as the reactions keep progressing, the activities gradually decrease. In contrast, the activities of Ni−(La2O3)0.1−(ZrO2)0.9 catalyst have high thermal stability and coke resistance due to the presence of La. Both methane conversion and hydrogen yield of Ni−(La2O3)0.1−(ZrO2)0.9 in non-reduced form are better than reduced form and as good as commercial Ni-based catalyst (ICI 57-4).