Experimental study of the oxidative steam reforming of fuel grade bioethanol over Pt–Ni metallic foam structured catalysts

In this work, Pt–Ni/CeO₂ catalysts have been used for the oxidative steam reforming of fuel grade bioethanol. To transfer the above formulation on structured carriers, due to the requirement of a washcoat (wc) deposition, it was mandatory to carry out a preliminary study on the catalysts in the form of powder. An initial experimental campaign was performed to optimise the ceria loading (between 25 and 45 wt%) as well as the Pt content (between 2 and 5 wt%): stability tests were carried out for 24 h at 500 °C, WHSV = 12.3 h⁻¹, H₂O/C₂H₅OH ratio of 4, O₂/C₂H₅OH of 0.5. The highest activity, selectivity and durability was recorded over the 3Pt–10Ni/35CeO₂/wc, which assured an ethanol conversion of almost 98% at the end of the test with a corresponding H₂ yield of 50%. This interesting formulation was transferred on a Ni–Fe substrate, made of an open cell foam, which was tested under the same operative conditions described above: the structured catalyst, due to the very good heat management within the catalytic bed and the improved mass transport, displayed a more stable behaviour compared to the corresponding powder, even in the presence of the typical bioethanol impurities; moreover, the formation of unwanted by-products was negligible throughout the whole investigated interval.