Enhancing resistance of carbon deposition and reaction stability over nickel loaded fibrous silica-alumina (Ni/FSA) for dry reforming of methane

Syngas production from the dry reforming of methane is now the most extensively utilized method for removing massive amounts of greenhouse emissions. Effective solutions towards the utilization of greenhouse gases such as CO2 and CH4 are scarce, except for power generation in the energy sector, which is a major source of CO2. Herein, dry reforming of methane was experimented for the first time using an effective catalytic system composed of 5% Ni fibrous silica-alumina (FSA) that was successfully fabricated using a hydrothermal method. The characterization results from XRD, FESEM mapping, TEM, BET,XRF, FTIR, H2-TPR, TGA/DTA, and Raman spectra demonstrated that Ni/FSA is composed of orderly Ni dispersion, small particles of Ni, robust basic sites, and high oxygen vacancies which enhanced the catalytic efficiency. The synthesized Ni/FSA also reduced coke formation and had long-term stability with no evidence of inactivation during and after the catalytic cycles. The superior activity of Ni/FSA was manifested in the high conversion rates of CH4 and CO2 at 97% and 92% respectively, with a H2:CO ratio of ≈ 1. The stability of Ni/FSA was also sustained over 30 h of operation at 800 °C. The findings of the Raman, TEM, and TGA/DTA tests revealed that the spent Ni/FSA catalysts did not exhibit graphitic carbon or metal sintering in significant amounts when compared to commercial Ni–Si/Al catalysts.