Decomposition and partial oxidation of methanol over metal oxide Cu-Zn-Ce-based monoliths

It is shown that metal oxide composites CuO-ZnO-CeO(2)/Al(2)O(3) and Cu-ZnO/Al(2)O(3), supported by cordierite monoliths, catalyze the production of hydrogen with selectivity and yield close to 90% and above for the decomposition and the partial oxidation of methanol. In methanol decomposition on CuO-ZnO-CeO(2)/Al(2)O(3)/cordierite, nanosized ceria acts as a key component stabilizing catalyst operation by suppressing carbonization of a surface, facilitating hydrogen production with a yield of 85-96%. At the same time, copper and zinc oxides are shown to act as modifying/promoting additives reducing the temperature of full conversion of the alcohol as well as minimizing the formation of methane as a by-product. Concerning partial oxidation of methanol over Cu-ZnO/Al(2)O(3)/cordierite, zinc oxide (as a constituent of ZnAl(2)O(4) aluminate) is shown to be a "self-sufficient" catalytic component playing a key role in the high-yield H(2) producing. A non-additive effect of decrease in selectivity concerning CO (as a by-product) on the binary Cu-ZnO catalyst, as compared with the samples derived from individual components Cu and ZnO, is found.