Autothermal reforming of methane over Ni/γ-Al2O3 catalysts: the enhancement effect of small quantities of noble metals

The effect of introducing small amounts of Pt, Pd and Ir (<0.3% by weight) into Ni/γAl2O3 catalysts (15% Ni w/w) for the autothermal reforming of methane (ATR) was investigated. While the unpromoted catalyst took the partial oxidation of methane to equilibrium, the promoted ones increased the methane conversion in ATR. No electronic modifications of nickel sites were observed with the addition of noble metals, but they did cause an increase in metal surface area. The effect of noble metals on this reaction, under these conditions, was assigned to this expansion of the metal surface.