Catalytic properties of Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ for synthesis gas production from biomass by catalytic partial oxidation of tar

Performance of Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ in the partial oxidation of tar from the pyrolysis of wood biomass (architectural salvage) was investigated and compared with various materials such as steam reforming Ni catalyst, active clay, USY zeolite, MS-13X, dolomite, alumina, silica sand, fluorite and non-catalyst. Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ and the steam reforming Ni catalyst exhibited much higher performance than any other materials in terms of hydrogen production and the amount of tar. Therefore, the performance of Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ and steam reforming Ni catalyst was particularly compared. From the result on the dependence of reaction temperature, equivalence ratio, and biomass feeding rate, Rh/CeO ₂/SiO₂ exhibited higher performance than the Ni catalyst, especially in terms of tar and coke amount. Furthermore, Rh/CeO ₂/SiO₂ was also more stable than the Ni catalyst. The catalyst deactivation can be related to the amount of coke deposition. The results indicate that Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ has high resistance to coke formation, and this is related to higher combustion activity of Rh/CeO ₂/SiO₂ than the Ni catalyst. Furthermore, from the TPR profiles, Rh/CeO₂/SiO₂ had higher reducibility than the Ni catalyst. The combination of high combustion activity with high reducibility and reforming activity can be related to high performance of tar conversion in the fluidized bed reactor.