Effect of CeO2 Morphology in Catalytic Performance via Methanol Oxidative Steam Reforming for Hydrogen Production

Methanol-based hydrogen production, including reforming, offers the advantage of yielding products with lower CO, CH4, and CO2 contents, thereby reducing environmental pollution. CeO2 is extensively employed in catalytic reforming due to its rich oxygen vacancies. However, the morphology of CeO2 influences the oxygen vacancy content, as well as the dispersion and stability of active metal species, ultimately affecting the catalyst’s performance. In this letter, we synthesized three Ni/CeO2 catalysts with distinct morphologies (sheet, particle, and cube) and explored their catalytic activity in the oxidative steam reforming of methanol for hydrogen generation. Among the three catalysts, Ni/CeO2–NS exhibited a superior surface area and the high oxygen vacancy content effectively anchors Ni on the surface of CeO2–NS, which can better activate water and oxygen molecules in methanol oxidative steam reforming. It exhibited the highest H2 production rate (3568.8–3729.74 mmol gcat–1 min–1) and methanol conversion (99.13–99.71%) at 450–600 °C. Furthermore, only marginal mass losses were observed for Ni/CeO2–NS (1.81%), indicating minimal carbon decomposition.