Synergistic Effect of Sol–Gel-Synthesized Nickel–Cobalt Catalyst Under Dry Reformation Conditions for Enhanced Conversion of Biogas to Biohydrogen
摘要
Hydrogen has emerged as a versatile carrier with the growing demand for cleaner energy to significantly reduce carbon emissions and reliance on fossil fuels. Biogas, primarily sourced from agricultural and cattle waste, is a rich and renewable feedstock for hydrogen production. Utilizing biogas not only addresses waste management issues but also mitigates both methane and carbon dioxide, which are significant contributors to greenhouse emissions. Dry reformation converts methane and carbon dioxide into syngas, utilizing the inherent carbon dioxide in biogas for sustainable energy production. This study investigates the dry reforming of methane for hydrogen production over Ni/alumina and bimetallic Ni–Co/alumina catalysts synthesized via the sol–gel technique. The synthesized catalysts were evaluated in a quartz-packed-bed reactor between 600 and 700 °C and at atmospheric pressure, with a gas hourly space velocity of 20,000 ml/(gcat h) and a methane to carbon dioxide ratio of 1 and 1.5. The bimetallic Ni–Co/alumina catalyst achieved an impressive CH4 and CO2 conversion and a H2/CO ratio > 2, outperforming the Ni/alumina catalyst. This enhanced performance is linked to improved metal-support interactions that promote better active site dispersion and reactivity. Additionally, a lower amount of coke was deposited over the bimetallic catalyst due to balanced acidic and basic active sites. Therefore, we propose Ni–Co/alumina catalysts synthesized using sol–gel method as a replacement for conventional catalysts for dry reformation for sustainable fuel production from biogas.