Modified oxalic acid co-precipitation method for preparing Cu/ZnO/Al2O3/Cr2O3/CeO2 catalysts for the OR (oxidative reforming) of M (methanol) to produce H2 (hydrogen) gas

OR (oxidative reforming) of M (methanol) was performed using Cu/ZnO/Al2O3-based catalysts, prepared using an oxalic co-precipitation method. We optimized the active catalyst formulation for low reaction temperatures and investigated the effects of varying the steam-methanol mole ratio, the oxygen methanol mole ratio, WHSV (weight hourly space velocity), precursor mix formulation, reaction temperature, and precipitation temperature, pH, and DTs (drying times) of oxalic acid co-precipitated precursors. The Cu/ZnO/Al2O3/Cr2O3/CeO2 (15/15/2.5/1.25/1.25) catalyst provided greater than 80% conversion to methanol at 200 degrees C under CO (carbon monoxide) at 900 ppm, and provided a 100-h lifetime. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.