The influence of the size of metal particles on the catalytic activity of Ni and Cu-supported catalysts in methanol reforming reaction

Abstract

The aim of the work was to investigate how the size of Ni and Cu-supported nanoparticles influence their activity in an oxidative steam reforming of methanol. The size of metal particles was controlled by the initial introduction or elimination of oxygen-containing groups on the surface of carbon nanotubes. The results of the activity tests showed that catalysts with the smallest metal nanoparticles were the least active since they easily underwent oxidation during the process.

Design of Silica Nanoparticles-Supported Metal Catalyst by Wet Impregnation with Catalytic Performance for Tuning Carbon Nanotubes Growth

“…Supported metal catalysts have been extensively used in a broad range of applications using gas-solid of liquid-solid reactions such as in the energy or biomass conversion [1]. Different applications may benefit these catalytic activities such as the hydrodesulfurization [2], the reforming reactions [3] and the hydrogenation/dehydrogenation [4,5], where the catalytic efficiency will be critically affected by the catalyst characteristics i.e., composition and phase [6,7], particle size [8], metal-support interaction [9]. Supported metal catalysts, when controlled to a nanometre-size, can be applied to the growth of CNTs by catalytic chemical vapor deposition (CCVD) [10].…”