Comparison of mechanistic understanding and experiments for CO methanation over nickel

Issues and challenges of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis catalysts

Depletion of oil and gas resources is a major concern for researchers and the global community. Researchers are trying to develop a way to overcome these issues using the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) process. The FTS reaction converts a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide gases into a liquid fuel. The reactions are performed in the reactor and in the presence of a catalyst. A series of catalysts, such as iron, cobalt, nickel, and ruthenium, have been used for the FTS process. In iron-based catalysts, the Fe5C phase is the active phase that produces C5+ hydrocarbons. At higher conversion rates, the presence of water in the products is a problem for cobalt catalysts because it can trigger catalyst deactivation mechanisms. Ni-based catalysts play key roles as base catalysts, promoters, and photothermal catalysts in FTS reactions to produce different useful hydrocarbons. Ruthenium catalysts offer not only high activity but also selectivity toward long-chain hydrocarbons. Moreover, depending on the Ru particle size and interaction with the oxide support, the catalyst properties can be tuned to enhance the catalytic activity during FTS. The detailed reaction pathways based on catalyst properties are explained in this article. This review article describes the issues and challenges associated with catalysts used for the FTS process.

The Effects of Ce and W Promoters on the Performance of Alumina-Supported Nickel Catalysts in CO2 Methanation Reaction

The influence of Ce and W promoters on the performance of alumina-supported nickel catalysts in the CO2 methanation reaction was investigated. The catalysts were obtained by the co-impregnation method. Nitrogen low-temperature adsorption, temperature-programmed reduction, hydrogen desorption, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and photoelectron spectroscopy studies were used for catalyst characterization. An introduction of Ce and W promoters (1–5 wt %) led to the decrease in mean Ni crystallite size. Gradual increase in the active surface area was observed only for Ce-promoted catalysts. The increase in CO2 conversion in methanation reaction at low-reaction temperatures carried out over Ce-promoted catalysts was attributed to the increase in the active surface area and changes in the redox properties. The introduction of small amounts of tungsten led to an increase in the activity of catalysts, although a decrease in the active surface area was observed. Quasi in situ XPS studies revealed changes in the oxidation state of tungsten under CO2 methanation reaction conditions, indicating the participation of redox promoter changes in the course of surface reactions, leading to an improvement in the activity of the catalyst.

Electrical Reverse Shift: Sustainable CO2 Valorization for Industrial Scale

Utilization of CO 2 is a requirement for a sustainable production of carbon-based chemicals. Reverse water-gas-shift (RWGS) can valorize CO 2 by reaction with hydrogen to produce a synthesis gas compatible with existing industrial infrastructure. Fully electrified reverse water-gas-shift (eRWGS™) was achieved using integrated ohmic heating and a nickel type catalyst at industrially relevant conditions. Using a feed of H 2 :CO 2 in a ratio of 2.25 at 10 barg, utilizing high temperature operation at 1050°C allowed for production of a synthesis gas with a H 2 /CO ratio of 2.0 and no detectable methane, ideal for production of sustainable fuel by e.g. the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Facilitating RWGS through CH 4 as intermediate was found superior to the selective RWGS route, due to higher activity and suppression of carbon formation. The eRWGS™ catalyst is found to provide a preferential emissions free route for production of synthesis gas for any relevant H 2 /CO ratio, enabling production of sustainable carbon-based chemicals from CO 2 and renewable electricity with high hydrogen and carbon efficiency.

Role of Fe Species of Ni-Based Catalysts for Efficient Low-Temperature Ethanol Steam Reforming

The suppression of methane and coke formation over Ni-based catalysts for low temperature ethanol steam reforming remains challenging. This paper describes the structural evolution of Fe-modified Ni/MgAl₂O₄ catalysts and the influence of iron species on methane and coke suppression for low temperature ethanol steam reforming. Ni-Fe alloy catalysts are gradually oxidized by water to generate Ni-rich alloy and γ-Fe₂O₃ species at steam-to-carbon ratio of 4. The electron transfer from iron to nickel within Ni-Fe alloy weakens the CO adsorption and effectively alleviates the CO/CO₂ methanation. The oxidation capacity of γ-Fe₂O₃ species promotes the transformation of ethoxy to acetate groups to avoid methane formation and the elimination of carbon deposits for anticoking. Ni10Fe10/MgAl₂O₄ shows a superior performance with a highest H₂ yield of 4.6 mol/mol ethanol at 400 °C for 15 h. This research could potentially provide instructions for the design of Ni-based catalysts for low-temperature ethanol steam reforming.

The Effect of CeO2 Preparation Method on the Carbon Pathways in the Dry Reforming of Methane on Ni/CeO2 Studied by Transient Techniques

The present work discusses the effect of CeO2 synthesis method (thermal decomposition (TD), precipitation (PT), hydrothermal (HT), and sol-gel (SG)) on the carbon pathways of dry reforming of methane with carbon dioxide (DRM) applied at 750 °C over 5 wt% Ni/CeO2. In particular, specific transient and isotopic experiments (use of 13CO, 13CO2, and 18O2) were designed and conducted in an attempt at providing insights about the effect of support’s preparation method on the concentration (mg gcat−1), reactivity towards oxygen, and transient evolution rates (μmol gcat−1 s−1) of the inactive carbon formed under (i) CH4/He (methane decomposition), (ii) CO/He (reverse Boudouard reaction), and (iii) the copresence of the two (CH4/CO/He, use of 13CO). Moreover, important information regarding the relative contribution of CH4 and CO2 activation routes towards carbon formation under DRM reaction conditions was derived by using isotopically labelled 13CO2 in the feed gas stream. Of interest was also the amount, and the transient rate, of carbon removal via the participation of support’s labile active oxygen species.

Clarification of Active Sites at Interfaces between Silica Support and Nickel Active Components for Carbon Monoxide Methanation

Identification of active site is critical for developing advanced heterogeneous catalysis. Here, a nickel/silica (Ni/SiO2) catalyst was prepared through an ammonia-evaporation method for CO methanation. The as-obtained Ni/SiO2 catalyst shows a CO conversion of 96.74% and a methane selectivity of 93.58% at 623 K with a weight hourly space velocity of 25,000 mL·g−1·h−1. After 150 h of continuous testing, the CO conversion still retains 96%, which indicates a high catalyst stability and long life. An in situ vacuum transmission infrared spectrum demonstrates that the main active sites locate at the interface between the metal Ni and the SiO2 at a wave number at 2060 cm−1 for the first time. The interesting discovery of the active site may offer a new insight for design and synthesis of methanation catalysts.

Contrasting the Role of Ni/Al2O3 Interfaces in Water-Gas Shift and Dry Reforming of Methane

Transition metal nanoparticles (NPs) are typically supported on oxides to ensure their stability, which may result in modification of the original NP catalyst reactivity. In a number of cases, this is related to the formation of NP/support interface sites that play a role in catalysis. The metal/support interface effect verified experimentally is commonly ascribed to stronger reactants adsorption or their facile activation on such sites compared to bare NPs, as indicated by DFT-derived potential energy surfaces (PESs). However, the relevance of specific reaction elementary steps to the overall reaction rate depends on the preferred reaction pathways at reaction conditions, which usually cannot be inferred based solely on PES. Hereby, we use a multiscale (DFT/microkinetic) modeling approach and experiments to investigate the reactivity of the Ni/Al₂O₃ interface toward water-gas shift (WGS) and dry reforming of methane (DRM), two key industrial reactions with common elementary steps and intermediates, but held at significantly different temperatures: 300 vs 650 °C, respectively. Our model shows that despite the more energetically favorable reaction pathways provided by the Ni/Al₂O₃ interface, such sites may or may not impact the overall reaction rate depending on reaction conditions: the metal/support interface provides the active site for WGS reaction, acting as a reservoir for oxygenated species, while all Ni surface atoms are active for DRM. This is in contrast to what PESs alone indicate. The different active site requirement for WGS and DRM is confirmed by the experimental evaluation of the activity of a series of Al₂O₃-supported Ni NP catalysts with different NP sizes (2-16 nm) toward both reactions.

Connection between macroscopic kinetic measurables and the degree of rate control

Macroscopic kinetic measurables are linked to elementary reaction steps by the degree of rate control.

The effect of cobalt promoter on the CO methanation reaction over MoS2 catalyst: a density functional study

The potential mechanism of sulfur-resistant CO methanation reaction over Co-MoS₂ catalyst was investigated via density functional theory (DFT + D) calculations, and the effect of Co-promoter was studied.

Using data mining technology in screening potential additives to Ni/Al2O3 catalysts for methanation

Data mining reduces the number of catalysts to be empirically analyzed and accelerates the discovery of new catalysts.

Theoretical insights into the effect of terrace width and step edge coverage on CO adsorption and dissociation over stepped Ni surfaces

We rationalized Ni(211) as a representative model for stepped surfaces and explored the effect of coverage on CO activation.