Novel sugar-based nickel-tungsten carbide catalysts for dry reforming of hydrocarbons

The search for new materials for dry reforming of hydrocarbons with high activity, stability, and ease of synthesis is still one of the main directions of research in the field of heterogeneous catalysis. Traditional methods of carbide synthesis require the use of combustible gases of petrochemical origin. The search for new catalysts based on renewable and safe carbon sources is highly demanded. Therefore, we report WC and Ni-WC catalysts prepared using glucose, sucrose, fructose and trehalose. The materials were characterized using XRD, AAS, H₂-TPR, SEM, TEM, Raman spectroscopy, FTIR, CO₂-TPD, TG/DTG BET and BJH methods. The catalytic activity was investigated in the dry reforming of methane and plastics. The sugar type used for the preparation determined crystal structure and therefore catalytic properties of Ni-WC catalysts. The most active and stable catalyst was prepared using sucrose. It was observed that catalysts obtained with the use of sugars containing fructose in their structure are characterized by smaller WC and Ni crystallites, which have a direct impact on high catalytic activity. The catalytic activity of the most active catalyst Ni-WC_S was examined in the dry reforming of plastics.The highest syngas generation was observed for low-density polyethylene reforming reaching 75.58 mmol/g plastic.