Hybrid Microwave-Combustion Synthesis of CuO/ZnO/Al2O3 Nanocatalyst Using Various Oxygen Contents for Hydrogen Production from Methanol

The hybrid microwave-combustion synthesis method is a facile and rapid pathway for fabrication of nanocatalysts. In this study, the effect of combustion atmosphere on physicochemical and catalytical properties of CuO/ZnO/Al2O3 nanocatalysts as the catalysts of the steam methanol reforming process was investigated. For this aim, three types of nanocatalysts under different oxygen concentration atmosphere were prepared. The characteristic properties of synthesized nanocatalysts were studied by XRD, FESEM, EDX, BET, and FTIR analyses. It was understood that the crystallinity of copper species is lower than the other samples which led to higher dispersion of copper sites as the main core for steam methanol reforming reaction. Moreover, higher surface area and better surface morphology of CZA-O60N40 resulted in higher methanol conversion. Nevertheless, its higher dispersion of Zn(100) crystallite facet led to more CO production as the undesired product.