Ni-Al2O3 catalysts prepared by solution combustion method for syngas methanation

Ni-Al2O3 catalysts with varied Ni contents from 10 to 50 wt.% were prepared by solution combustion method for syngas methanation, and characterized by N-2 adsorption-desorption, XRD, H-2-TPR, SEM and TEM. The results show that the catalytic activity for syngas methanation over the Ni-Al2O3 catalysts is sensitive to Ni particle size and a maximum production rate of methane per unit mass of nickel can be achieved on Ni crystals around 41.8 nm. Moreover, Ni-Al2O3 catalysts with Ni loading above 20 wt.% show good high temperature stability, which is due to Ni particles scattered and spatially isolated by Al2O3. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.