Mesostructured cellular foam silica supported bimetallic LaNi1-xCoxO3 catalyst for CO2 methanation

Abstract To address the metal sintering problem over the transitional one-dimensional-channel materials supported metal catalyst at high loadings, the 3-dimensional mesostructured cellular foam silica (MCF) supported bimetallic LaNi1–xCoxO3 perovskite catalyst was prepared via a citric acid assisted impregnation method for CO2 methanation. Highly dispersed La2O3 and bimetallic Ni–Co alloy nanoparticles with size of around 5.1 nm were immobilized inside the pores of the MCF silica with intimate contact, resulting in high catalytic activity at low temperature and superior stability at high temperature for CO2 methanation. Among all catalysts, the LaNi0.95Co0.05O3/MCF catalyst exhibited the highest catalytic activity due to its smallest Ni–Co alloy nanoparticles as well as the synergistic effect between Ni and Co species. In addition, LaNi0.95Co0.05O3/MCF catalyst also showed high long-term stability without Ni sintering in a 100 h-lifetime test, which was attributed to the confinement effect of the MCF support as well as the physical barrier of La2O3 species nearby metallic Ni nanoparticles.