Hydrogen Production by Ethanol Reforming on Supported Ni-Cu Catalysts.

Supported bimetallic Ni-Cu catalysts with different Ni-Cu loadings on alumina (Al 2 O 3 ), alumina-silica (Al 2 O 3 -SiO 2 ), alumina-magnesia (Al 2 O 3 -MgO), alumina-zinc oxide (Al 2 O 3 -ZnO), and alumina-lanthanum oxide (Al 2 O 3 -La 2 O 3 ) were prepared and tested in ethanol steam reforming for the production of hydrogen (H 2 ). These catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, H 2 -temperature-programmed reduction, ammonia-temperature-programmed desorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetry, and differential scanning calorimetry. Cu addition improved the reducibility of NiO. Among the as-prepared catalysts, 30Ni5Cu/Al 2 O 3 -MgO and 30Ni5Cu/Al 2 O 3 -ZnO demonstrated much higher H 2 selectivity and excellent coke resistance compared to the other investigated catalysts. Over 30Ni5Cu/Al 2 O 3 -MgO and 30Ni5Cu/Al 2 O 3 -ZnO, the respective H 2 selectivity was 73.3 and 63.6% at 450 °C and increased to 94.0 and 95.2% at 600 °C. The strong interaction of Ni-Cu and Al 2 O 3 -ZnO (or Al 2 O 3 -MgO) led to the formation of smaller and highly dispersed CuO and NiO species on the carrier, which is conducive to improved catalytic performance. These Al 2 O 3 -MgO- and Al 2 O 3 -ZnO-supported bimetallic Ni-Cu materials can be promising catalysts for hydrogen production from ethanol steam reforming.