Ni-Cu based catalysts prepared by two different methods and their catalytic activity toward the ATR of methane

This study deals with an investigation of the catalytic performance of a bimetallic system based on Ni and Cu prepared by two different methods. It was found that the oxalate method permits to obtain crystallites with lower dimension compared to the sol-gel method, even after the calcination of powders carried out at the same temperature. Furthermore, the catalytic behavior of the two samples was different. The Ni-Cu prepared by oxalate method showed higher performance and stability than the Ni-Cu prepared by sol-gel in autothermal reforming (ATR) of methane achieving a fuel conversion of about 80%. © 2014 The Institution of Chemical Engineers.