Hydrogen Production by Steam Reforming of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Over Nickel-Iron-Alumina Aerogel Catalyst

A mesoporous nickel-iron-alumina aerogel (denoted as NFA) catalyst was prepared by a single-step epoxide-driven sol–gel method and a subsequent supercritical CO₂ drying method. For comparison, a mesoporous nickel-iron-alumina xerogel (denoted as NFX) catalyst was also prepared by a singlestep epoxide-driven sol–gel method and a subsequent evaporative drying method. Both catalysts were applied to the steam reforming of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for hydrogen production. The effect of drying method on the physicochemical properties and catalytic activities of the catalysts was investigated. It was revealed that supercritical CO₂ drying method was effective for enhancing textural properties of NFA catalyst. XRD and TPR results showed that both catalysts had nickel, iron, and aluminum spinel structures. However, NFA catalyst retained stronger metal-support interaction than NFX catalyst. It was also observed that the reduced NFA catalyst exhibited higher nickel surface area than the reduced NFX catalyst. In the hydrogen production by steam reforming of liquefied natural gas (LNG), NFA catalyst with higher nickel surface area showed a better catalytic performance than NFX catalyst.