Steam reforming of ethanol over metal-oxide-promoted Pt/SiO2 catalysts: Effects of strong metal-oxide interaction (SMOI)

Abstract The steam reforming of ethanol over metal-oxide-promoted Pt/SiO 2 catalysts after H 2 reduction was investigated. The catalysts were prepared by sequential impregnation with an aqueous solution of Pt(NO 2 ) 2 (NH 3 ) 2 and aqueous solutions of metal complexes of V, Nb, and Mo. For a range of low temperatures (393–513 K), the ethanol conversion achieved by adding these metal oxides was greater than that achieved when an un-promoted-Pt/SiO 2 catalyst was used. The highest ethanol conversion was achieved in the case of the Nb-oxide-promoted Pt/SiO 2 catalyst; in this case, the ethanol conversion was the highest and it was 2.7 times higher than that in the case of the un-promoted Pt/SiO 2 catalyst at 473 K. The results of catalyst characterization suggest that the surface of Pt metal particles was covered by NbO x . The effects of strong metal-oxide interaction (SMOI) in Pt–NbO x enhanced the steam reforming of ethanol.