Coke Minimization during Conversion of Biogas to Syngas by Bimetallic Tungsten-Nickel Incorporated Mesoporous Alumina Synthesized by the One-Pot Route

Dry re-forming of methane with CO2 was investigated over bimetallic W and Ni incorporated mesoporous alumina catalysts prepared by the one-pot sol-gel route. Powdered materials were thoroughly characterized (N-2 physisorption, XRD, XPS, SEM-EDX, TGA-DTA, TPH) prior to and after catalytic runs performed at 600 and 750 degrees C. High surface area W-Ni incorporated mesoporous alumina catalysts (S-BET = 1781-92 m(2)/g) synthesized in this work showed excellent performance for the conversion of model biogas to synthesis gas. The Ni-W containing materials exhibited high catalytic activity, which was maintained throughout 150 h of time-on-stream (TOS) long-term operation at 750 degrees C. Increase of the W loading (0-10-15 wt %) at fixed nickel amount (5 wt %) resulted in prevented deactivation of the catalyst, most prominent at 600 degrees C, and minimization of coke formation on the surface of the catalyst. Tungsten incorporation was thus proven to significantly enhance and stabilize the overall catalyst performance.