The Effect of the Addition of Promoter to Ni Supported Perovskite, Hydrotalcite and Metal Oxide Catalysts On the Autothermal Reforming of Propane

Autothermal reforming (ATR) of propane is considered the major processes for producing hydrogen. LPG is a commercial gas that is easily transport, and propane is a constituent of LPG. In this present work autothermal reforming (ATR) of propane for hydrogen production is studied by Ni loaded perovskite, hydrotalcite and metal oxides catalysts and then theses are promoted by the addition of promoter. The Ni supported catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission electron microscope (TEM), Temperature programmed reduction (TPR) and Thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) techniques. Ni supported catalysts were investigated for the autothermal reforming(ATR) of propane in a fixed-bed flow reactor. Reactant ratio of H₂O/C₃H₈/O₂=8.96/1.0/1.1 and the amount of catalyst used 0.15g reduced with 10%H₂/N₂ for 1h at 600°C. Among various Ni supported catalysts, Ni/ZrO₂ catalyst showed higher activity at low temperature. The order of catalytic activity was ZrO₂³LaAlO₃>Al₂O₃>MgAl. Ceria oxide has been widely used as promoter due to its high oxygen storage capacity, acting as thermal stabilizer of the support, allowing better dispersion of the metal. TGA results showed that the influence of the addition of ceria on the reaction presented reduced catalyst deactivation. In the case of Ni/MgAl with ceria, the yield is higher than Ni/MgAl's. These results are related to the size of particle in XRD.