Catalytic performance of Ni-Fe/γ-Al_2O_3 catalyst prepared from different nickel precursors for CO methanation

Bimetallic Ni-Fe/γ-Al2O3 catalysts were prepared from different nickel precursors of Ni(NO3)2,Ni(CH3CO2)2and NiCl2(denoted as Ni-Fe-N,Ni-Fe-Ac,Ni-Fe-Cl,respectively) by the impregnation method.The catalysts for CO methanation in a slurry-bed reactor were investigated using XRD,CO-TPD and H2-TPR.Ni-Fe-N showed maximal catalytic activity for CO methanation,with CO conversion of 97.2% and CH4 selectivity of 87.3%,while Ni-Fe-Cl showed a minimum activity with CO conversion of 47.3% and CH4 selectivity of 58.7%.The higher activity of Ni-Fe-N was attributed to high dispersion of NiO,interaction between Ni and Fe in bimetallic catalyst and high adsorption capacity for CO.