Steam reforming of naphthalene/benzene with various types of Pt- and Ni-based catalysts for hydrogen production

The influence of support on the catalytic performances of Pt and Ni based catalysts for the steam reforming of naphthalene/benzene as model tar compounds of biomass gasification was investigated. Pt/Al2O3 catalyst showed relatively high and stable activity in steam reforming for 30 h at 1023 K and 1073 K with steam/carbon (S/C) molar ratio of 3. However, this catalyst remarkably lost its activity after 1st step of oxidation treatment during cycle test of steam reforming-oxidation treatment. On the other hand, when hydrogen treatment was conducted as a regeneration method, Pt/Al2O3 catalyst showed stable performance for 5 cycles. Ni/Al2O3 and Pt/Al2O3 catalysts showed similar catalytic behaviors for steam reforming and cycle test. Pt/MgO catalyst exhibited stable activity at 1073 K for the steam reforming under steady state and cycle utilization test of steam reforming-oxidation treatment. However, when the reaction temperature was reduced to 1023 K, Pt/MgO catalyst lost its activity for both cases. It is concluded from the above results that Al2O3 supported catalysts were excellent catalysts for the steam reforming of naphthalene/benzene to produce H-2. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.