Structure and Catalytic Performance of Mg-SBA-15-Supported Nickel Catalysts for CO2 Reforming of Methane to Syngas

A series of Mg-modified SBA-15 mesoporous silicas with different MgO contents were successfully synthesized by a simple one-pot synthesis method and further impregnated with Ni. The Mg-modified SBA-15 materials and supported Ni catalysts were characterized by N-2 physisorption (BET), X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed desorption of CO2 (CO2-TPD), temperature-programmed H-2 reduction (H-2-TPR), and temperature-programmed hydrogenation (TPH) techniques and used for methane dry reforming with CO2. CO2-TPD results proved that the addition of Mg increased the total amount of basic sites which was responsible for the enhanced catalytic activity over the Mg-modified Ni catalyst. The excellent catalytic stability of Ni/8Mg-SBA-15 was ascribed to less coking and higher stability of the Ni particle size due to the introduction of Mg.