Effects of adding La and Ce to hydrotalcite-type Ni/Mg/Al catalyst precursors on ethanol steam reforming reactions Original Research Article

Catalyst precursors composed of Ni/Mg/Al oxides with added La and Ce were tested in ethanol steam reforming (ESR) reactions. La and Ce were added by anion-exchange. The oxides were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) analysis. The catalyst precursors consist of a mixture of oxides, with the nickel in the form of NiO strongly interacting with the support Mg/Al. The XPS analysis showed a lanthanum–support interaction, but no interaction of Ce species with the support. The reaction data obtained with the active catalysts showed that the addition of Ce and La resulted in better H2 production at 550 °C. The CeNi catalyst provided the higher ethanol conversion, with lower acetaldehyde production, possibly due to a favoring of water adsorption on the weakly interacting clusters of CeO2 on the surface.