High-performance Ni-CeAlO₃-Al₂O₃/FeCrAl-fiber catalyst for catalytic oxy-methane reforming to syngas

A thin-sheet Ni-CeAlO₃-Al₂O₃/FeCrAl-fiber to be used in the COMR process was fabricated by thermally decomposing the catalyst precursor of NiAl-LDHs/FeCrAl-fiber to form the NiO-Al₂O₃/FeCrAl-fiber, followed by CeO₂-modification and H₂-reduction. Pre-mounting a γ-Al₂O₃ layer onto the FeCrAl-fiber is particularly critical for the hydrothermal growth of LDHs along with the fiber surface. The most promising catalyst, with 5 wt% Al₂O₃, 5 wt% Ni, and 2 wt% CeO₂, exhibits high activity, high selectivity, and particularly prolonged stability. At a gas hourly space velocity of 100 L g⁻¹ h⁻¹ and 700 °C, CH₄ conversion and H₂/CO selectivity can be stably maintained at ~86% and ~96.1/~91.5% for a feed gas with CH₄/O₂ molar ratio of 2.0/1.0 during 350 h test, in nature, due to the enhanced Ni-sintering and improved carbon resistance. The existence of “CeAlO₃-CeO₂” cycle enables the catalyst with high carbon resistance because of the intensified C-elimination to inhibit filaments growth.