Co-Fe-Si Aerogel Catalytic Honeycombs for Low Temperature Ethanol Steam Reforming

Cobalt talc doped with iron (Fe/Co~0.1) and dispersed in SiO2 aerogel was prepared from silica alcogel impregnated with metal nitrates by supercritical drying. Catalytic honeycombs were prepared following the same procedure, with the alcogel synthesized directly over cordierite honeycomb pieces. The composite aerogel catalyst was characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, focus ion beam, specific surface area and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The catalytic layer is about 8 μm thick and adheres well to the cordierite support. It is constituted of talc layers of about 1.5 μm × 300 nm × 50 nm which are well dispersed and anchored in a SiO2 aerogel matrix with excellent mass-transfer properties. The catalyst was tested in the ethanol steam reforming reaction, aimed at producing hydrogen for on-board, on-demand applications at moderate temperature (573–673 K) and pressure (1–7 bar). Compared to non-promoted cobalt talc, the catalyst doped with iron produces less methane as byproduct, which can only be reformed at high temperature, thereby resulting in higher hydrogen yields. At 673 K and 2 bar, 1.04 NLH2·mLEtOH(l)·min are obtained at S/C = 3 and W/F = 390 g·min·molEtOH. OPEN ACCESS Catalysts 2012, 2 387