Treatment and hydrogen generation of bisphenol a by aqueous phase reforming over Ni-based catalysts with different supports

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a hazardous pollutant in industrial wastewater, whose safe disposal remains a worldwide problem. This paper explored the potential of aqueous phase reforming (APR) towards the treatment and H2 generation of concentrated BPA wastewater over Pt/C and Ni-based catalysts supported by Al2O3, C, and ZSM-5. It was demonstrated that Ni/Al2O3 outperformed Ni/C and Ni/ZSM-5 in chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal and H2 production, which could be attributed to its high medium basic sites and large pore volume. In addition, the H2 yield over Ni/Al2O3 (21.93 mmol H2/g COD) was even higher than that over Pt/C (3.51 mmol H2/g COD). The optimal COD removal and H2 yield over Ni/Al2O3 reached 88.09% and 250.97 mmol/g COD H2 was obtained at 340 degrees C for 4 h. According to the identified reactants and previous research, the reaction pathway for APR of BPA over Ni/Al2O3 involved the cleavage of the C-C bond of BPA to generate phenol and p-iso- propylphenol, with Bis-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-methane formed concurrently through the demethylation of BPA.