Investigation of Ni/SiO2 Fiber Catalysts Prepared by Different Methods on Hydrogen production from Ethanol Steam Reforming

Ni/SiO2 (Ni/SF) catalysts were prepared by electrospinning of the SF followed by impregnation. The performance of the Ni/SF catalysts for hydrogen production from ethanol steam reforming at various conditions was investigated in comparison with a conventional Ni/silica porous (Ni/SP) catalyst. The influence of the Ni/SF catalyst preparation methods on the catalytic activity and stability in ethanol steam reforming was also studied. The catalysts were prepared by three different preparation techniques: impregnation (IM), deposition precipitation (DP) and strong electrostatic adsorption (SEA). The Ni/SF catalyst exhibited higher performances and stability than the Ni/SP catalyst. The H-2 yields of 55% and 47% were achieved at 600 degrees C using the Ni/SF and Ni/SP catalysts, respectively. The preparation methods had a significant effect on the catalytic activity and stability of the Ni/SF catalyst, where that prepared by the SEA method had a smaller Ni particle size and higher dispersion, and also exhibited the highest catalytic activity and stability compared to the Ni/SF catalysts prepared by IM and DP methods. The maximum H-2 yield produced from the catalyst prepared by SEA was 65%, while that from the catalysts prepared by DP and IM were 60% and 55%, respectively, under the same conditions. The activity of the fiber catalysts prepared by SEA, DP and IM remained almost constant at all times during a 16 h stability test.