Multidisciplinary green approaches (ultrasonic, co- precipitation, hydrothermal, and microwave) for fabrication and characterization of Erbium- promoted Ni-Al2O3 catalyst for CO2 methanation

The dispersion of nickel catalysts is crucial for the catalytic ability of CO2 methanation, which can be influenced by the fabrication method and the operation process of the catalysts. Therefore, a series of fabrication methods, including ultrasonic, hydrothermal, microwave, and co-precipitation, have been applied to prepare 25Ni-5Er-Al2O3 catalysts. The fabrication method can partially influence the structural and catalytic activity of the nickel aluminate catalysts. Among the catalysts modified by Erbium prepared with various methods, the catalyst fabricated by ultrasonic pathway exhibited better catalytic performance and CH4 selectivity especially, at a temperature (400 degrees C). The impact of the temperature of the reaction (200-500 degrees C) was examined under a stoichiometric precursor ratio of (H-2:CO2) = 4: 1, atmospheric pressure, and space velocity (GHSV) of 25000 mL/gcath. The results demonstrate that the ultrasonic method is strongly efficient for fabricating Ni-based catalysts with a high BET surface area of about 190.33 m(2) g(-1). The catalyst composed via the ultrasonic technique has 69.38 % carbon dioxide conversion and 100 % methane selectivity at 400 degrees C for excellent catalytic performance in CO2 methanation reactions. The fabrication effect can be associated with its high surface area, which is achieved via the hot spot mechanism. Besides, the addition of Erbium promotes the Ni dispersion on the supports and stimulates the positive reaction because of the erbium oxygen vacancies. (c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.

Automated summary

The dispersion of nickel catalysts plays a crucial role in CO2 methanation reactions. Various fabrication methods, including ultrasonic, hydrothermal, microwave, and co-precipitation, have been used to prepare 25Ni-5Er-Al2O3 catalysts. Among them, the ultrasonic method shows the best catalytic performance in terms of methane selectivity at a temperature of 400 degrees C. The addition of Erbium promotes the dispersion of nickel on the supports and enhances the reaction due to erbium oxygen vacancies.