ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite prepared by a glycine nitrate process method and applied for hydrogen production by steam reforming of methanol

To address climate change, the energy crisis, and global warming, hydrogen (H-2) can be used as a potential energy carrier because it is clean, non-toxic and efficient. Today, the mainstream industrial method of H-2 generation is steam reforming of methanol (SRM). In this process, a zinc-based commercial catalyst is usually used. In this work, a ZnO-ZnCr2O4 catalyst was successfully synthesised by the glycine nitrate process (GNP) and developed for use in H-2 production by SRM. The specific surface area, porous structure and reaction sites of the zinc-based catalyst were effectively increased by the preparation method. The as-combusted ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite catalyst had a highly porous structure due to the gas released during the GNP reaction process. Moreover, according to the ZnO distribution and different G/N ratios, the specific surface area (S-BET) of the as-combusted ZnO-ZnCr2O4 catalyst varied from 29 m(2) g(-1) to 46 m(2) g(-1). The ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite catalyst (G/N 1.7) exhibited the highest hydrogen production, 4814 ml STP min(-1) g-cat(-1), at a reaction temperature of 450 degrees C without activation treatment. After activation, the ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite catalyst achieved hydrogen production of 6299 ml STP min(-1) g-cat(-1) at a reaction temperature of 500 degrees C. The hydrogen production performance of the ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite powder was improved by the uniform addition of ZnO to ZnCr2O4. Based on the performance, this ZnO-ZnCr2O4 composite catalyst has great potential to have industrial and economic impact due to its high efficiency in hydrogen production.