Steam Reforming of Methanol with Sm₂O₃−CeO₂-Supported Palladium Catalysts: Influence of the Thermal Treatments of Catalyst and Support

The design of new anode materials to promote the reforming of methanol is important for the development of intermediate temperature direct methanol solid oxide fuel cells. A previous study showed Pd/CeO₂−Sm₂O₃ to be a good candidate. Here, the influence of the calcination pretreatment of the support and the reduction temperature of the catalyst on the steam reforming of methanol are investigated, as they can become key factors in the performance of the catalyst. Conversion, H₂ yield, and TOF were considerably higher when the support was calcined at 800 °C (Pd/CS-800) instead of 1000 °C (Pd/CS-1000). Characterization results suggest a stronger interaction of Pd particles with the support in Pd/CS-1000, which hinders its accessibility to the gas atmosphere, and a less homogeneous distribution of Pd particles. In both cases, the activity increases on increasing the reduction temperature from 400 to 500 °C. In addition, these catalysts were highly resistant to deactivation.