Influence of the component interaction over Cu/ZrO2 catalysts induced with fractionated precipitation method on the catalytic performance for methanol steam reforming

A series of binary Cu/ZrO2 catalysts by choosing different composition ratios and different precipitation sequences have been prepared for the production of hydrogen by steam reforming of methanol (SRM). A variety of characterization techniques including N-2 adsorption, N2O chemisorption, TEM, TPD and Raman are employed to characterize the physical and chemical properties of the catalysts. The results show that the preparation methods significantly affect the component dispersion, microstructure and adsorption properties. The Cu/ZrO2 catalyst with 27.3% ZrO2 loading prepared by fractionated precipitation method displays higher specific surface and interface between copper and zirconia, which not only accelerates decomposition of adsorbed methanol and water, but also promotes formation of Cu+ and surface oxygen species, accordingly enhancing the catalytic activity and stability.