A series of Ce-Fe-Zr-O(x)/MgO(x denotes the mass fraction of Ce-Fe-Zr-O,x=10%,15%,20%,25%,30%) complex oxide oxygen carriers for selective oxidation of methane to synthesis gas were prepared by the co-precipitation method.The catalysts were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction and H2-TPR.The XRD measurements showed that MgFeO4 particles were formed and Fe2O3 particles well dispersed on the oxygen carriers.The reactions between methane diluted by argon(10% CH4) and oxygen carriers were investigated.Suitable content of CeO2/Fe2O3/ZrO2 mixed oxides could promote the reaction between methane and oxygen carriers.There are mainly two kinds of oxygen of carriers:surface lattice oxygen which had higher activity but lower selectivity,and bulk lattice oxygen which had lower activity but higher selectivity.Among all the catalysts,Ce-Fe-Zr-O(20%)/MgO exhibited the best catalytic performance.The conversion of the methane was above 56%,and the selectivity of the H2 and CO were both above 93%,the ratio of H2/CO was stable and approached to 2 for a long time.
CeO2 oxygen carrier was prepared by precipitation method and tested by two-step steam reforming of methane （SRM）. Two-step SRM for hydrogen and syngas generation is investigated in a fixed-bed reactor. Methane is directly converted to syngas at a H2/CO ratio close to 2 ： 1 at a high temperature （above 750 °C） by the lattice oxygen of CeO2; methane cracking is found when the reduction degree of CeO2 was above 5.0% at 850 °C in methane isothermal reaction. CeO2？δ obtained from methane isothermal reaction can split water to generate CO-free hydrogen and renew its lattice oxygen at 700 °C; simultaneously, deposited carbon is selectively oxidized to CO2 by steam following the reaction （C＋2H2O→CO2＋2H2）. Slight deactivation in terms of amounts of desired products （syngas and hydrogen） is observed in ten repetitive two-step SRM process due to the carbon deposition on CeO2 surface as well as sintering of CeO2.
Xing Zhu, Hua Wang YonggangWei Kongzhai Li Xianming Cheng
