Highly effective production of hydrogen from bio-oil was achieved by using a low-temperature electrochemical catalytic reforming approach over the conventional Ni-based reforming catalyst （NiO-Al2O3）, where an AC electronic current passed through the catalyst bed. The promoting effects of current on the bio-oil reforming were studied. It was found that the performance of the bio-oil reforming was remarkably enhanced by the current which passed through the catalyst. The effects of currents on the microcosmic properties of the catalyst, including the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller （BET） surface area, pore diameter, pore volume, the size of the crystallites and the reduction level of NiO into Ni, were carefully characterized by BET, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscope. The desorption of the thermal electrons from the electrified catalyst was directly observed by the TOF （time of flight） measurements. The mechanism of the electrochemical catalytic reforming of bio-oil is discussed based on the above investigation.
