Effect of the Nickel Source on the Structure, Performance, and Carbon Deposition of the Ni/Al(2)O(3) Catalyst for CO(2)–CH(4) Reforming

[Image: see text] Ni/Al(2)O(3) catalysts were prepared with Ni(NO(3))(2)·6H(2)O, NiSO(4)·6H(2)O, NiCl(2)·6H(2)O, and NiC(4)H(6)O(4)·4H(2)O as nickel sources by the solution combustion method. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, H(2) temperature-programmed hydrogenation, TG-DTG, TPH, and transmission electron microscopy methods, and the effect of the nickel source on performance of the Ni/Al(2)O(3) catalyst was investigated via the CO(2)–CH(4) reforming experiment. Results showed that Ni dispersion, Ni size, and the metal–support interaction between active component Ni and the support were influenced significantly by anion in nickel sources, resulting in that the performance of each catalyst was different. Highly dispersed Ni species, small Ni crystallite size, and strong metal–support interaction were presented in the Ni/Al(2)O(3) catalysts with Ni(NO(3))(2)·6H(2)O and NiSO(4)·6H(2)O as nickel sources. Evaluation results showed that the catalyst prepared with Ni(NO(3))(2)·6H(2)O exhibited higher activity and stability, with CH(4) and CO(2) conversions of 31.21 and 48.97%. Carbon deposition analysis demonstrated that the catalyst prepared with NiSO(4)·6H(2)O contained more graphite carbon.