Sorbent assisted catalyst of Ni-CaO-La2O3 for sorption enhanced steam reforming of bio-oil with acetic acid as the model compound

Abstract Sorption enhanced steam reforming of acetic acid over sorbent assisted catalyst of Ni-CaO-La 2 O 3 were investigated for high-purity H 2 production. Ni-CaO-La 2 O 3 with 8, 16 and 20 wt% Ni were developed by sol-gel combustion synthesis and were characterized by TG, TPR, BET, SEM, XRD and XPS. The catalytic activities and stability of the catalysts were tested in a fixed reactor. H 2 yield and H 2 concentration through Ni-CaO-La 2 O 3 with 20 wt% Ni reaches 86.02% and 92.24% during pre-breakthrough period, respectively, which is attributed to sufficient Ni active sites on the surface and good Ni dispersion. Catalytic activities of Ni-CaO-La 2 O 3 with 20 wt% Ni maintain stable during sorption-enhanced steam reforming reaction, but CO 2 sorption capacity slightly decreases due to blockage of pores and size increase of CaO particles within nine sorption/desorption cycles.