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.