Fibrous alumina-based Ni-MO x (M = Mg, Cr, Ce) catalysts for propane pre-reforming S.I. Uskov a,b , D.I. Potemkin a,b,c,⇑ , N. Kamboj d , P.V. Snytnikov a,b , V.P. Pakharukova a,b , L.V. Enikeeva e , I.M. Gubaydullin e,f , I. Hussainova d,g a Boreskov Institute of Catalysis, Pr. Lavrentieva, 5, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia b Novosibirsk State University, Pirogova St., 2, Novosibirsk 630090, Russia c Novosibirsk State Technical University, Karl Marx Pr., 20, Novosibirsk 630073, Russia d Tallinn University of Technology, Ehitajate tee 5, 19086 Tallinn, Estonia e Ufa State Petroleum Technological University, Kosmonavtov St., 1, Ufa 450062, Russia f Institute of Petrochemistry and Catalysis of RAS, October Pr., 141, Ufa 450075, Russia g ITMO University, Kronverksky Pr., 49, St. Petersburg 197101 Russia article info Article history: Received 17 September 2019 Received in revised form 24 September 2019 Accepted 24 September 2019 Available online 25 September 2019 Keywords: Ni-alumina catalyst Nanofibers Liquefied petroleum gas Pre-reforming Propane Nanoparticles Interfaces abstract In the scope of transition to closed carbon cycle economy hydrogen is becoming a major energy carrier and the development of novel functional materials for its production and storage is of great interest. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is one of the primary options for this purpose due to high energy density and well-developed production and transportation infrastructure. We report novel alumina nanofibers supported Ni-MO x (M = Mg, Cr, Ce) catalysts for the steam reforming of LPG, prepared via template- assisted wet-combustion synthesis using glycine as a fuel additive. High dispersion and uniform distribu- tion of nickel and MO x species over nanofibers surface were provided by this preparation technique. The catalysts exhibited sufficient activity, stability and coking resistance in propane pre-reforming at low steam to carbon ratio and temperatures of 350–425 °C. Catalytic activity in propane pre-reforming increased in order Ni-MgO/ANF < Ni-CeO x /ANF < Ni-CrO x /ANF. High activity is most likely associated with high specific Ni surface area and red-ox properties of carriers. Ó 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction There is a growing interest towards search and design of novel functional materials, especially for environmental and energy- related applications. In the scope of transition to closed carbon cycle economy, hydrogen is becoming a major energy carrier [1]. Therefore, fuel cell (FC) technology becomes the primary choice for power generation. CO 2 hydrogenation into liquid hydrocarbons, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), is an option for energy stor- age and transportation [2]. Hydrogen can be recovered from LPG with high yield by steam reforming reaction. In this scope the design of active and stable LPG steam reforming catalysts is an actual task. In our previous work we reported CeO 2 -modified alumina- nanofibers supported nickel catalyst (Ni-CeO 2 /ANF), prepared via template-assisted wet-combustion synthesis [3]. Ni-CeO 2 /ANF exhibited sufficient activity, stability and coking resistance in pro- pane pre-reforming at low steam to carbon ratio and temperatures of 350–425 °C. The result was reached due to high dispersion and uniform distribution of nickel and ceria species over nanofibers surface. Besides CeO 2 , MgO and Cr 2 O 3 are known to promote the dispersion and coking resistance of nickel catalysts [3–6]. In the present paper we report a comparative study of Ni-MO x / ANF (M = Mg, Cr, Ce) catalysts, including catalytic performance in propane pre-reforming and structural characterization. 2. Experimental Nanofibers of c-alumina (ANF) were used as a catalyst support [7]. The diameter of a single fiber was 10 ± 2 nm and its length was 5 ± 1 cm. Three different catalysts were prepared by a single-step wet-combustion method [8–10]. Ni(NO 3 ) 2 ∙6H 2 O(98.5%, Sigma- Aldrich), Mg(NO 3 ) 2 ∙6H 2 O(99%, Sigma-Aldrich), Ce(NO 3 ) 3 ∙6H 2 O (99%, Sigma-Aldrich) and Cr(NO 3 ) 3 ∙6H 2 O(99%, Sigma-Aldrich) were used as metal precursors to prepare aqueous reactive https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matlet.2019.126741 0167-577X/Ó 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. ⇑ Corresponding author at: Novosibirsk State Technical University, Karl Marx Pr., 20, Novosibirsk 630073, Russia. E-mail address: potema@catalysis.ru (D.I. Potemkin). Materials Letters 257 (2019) 126741 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Materials Letters journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/mlblue