Performance of Ni/CeO₂–TiO₂–CuxO catalysts in the dry reforming of methane
Rama Samer AL MASALMEH, Aseel HUSSIEN, Dinesh SHETTY, Kyriaki POLYCHRONOPOULOU, Maguy ABI JAOUDE
Abstract. Dry reforming of methane (DRM) catalysts consisting of Ni supported on CeO₂–TiO₂–CuxO mixed oxides were synthesized by a sol–gel assisted hydrothermal method coupled with a post-chelation-coupled impregnation (CCI) of 10 wt.% Ni. Four catalysts (i-E1, i-E3, i-E6, and i-E8), calcined at 500 °C, were selected to evaluate the influence of fatty acid to acetic acid (FA/AA) ratio in the synthesis mixture and hydrothermal treatment duration on the structural, chemisorption properties and performance of the Ni-impregnated catalysts in DRM. Characterization confirmed that all catalysts preserved the targeted Ce:Ti:Cu atomic ratio of 70:20:10, with Ni loading close to 10 wt.%. XRD of the reduced catalysts revealed metallic Ni and CeO₂ phases with Ni crystallite sizes ranging from 16.55 to 20.65 nm. Chemisorption studies showed significant differences in reducibility and acid–base character, with i-E3 displaying the highest reducibility and strongest basicity. In contrast, i-E6 and i-E8, both synthesized without fatty acid, exhibited weaker redox and acid–base characteristics; however, their behavior diverged depending on hydrothermal duration, with i-E6 showing improved Ni dispersion from prolonged treatment but still limited acidity/basicity, while i-E8, prepared under shorter treatment, displayed the least favorable overall properties. Catalytic tests in a fixed-bed reactor demonstrated stable conversions of CH4 and CO2 around 20–22% at 500 °C. Time-on-stream experiments for 12 h highlighted better stability of i-E1 and i-E3 compared to i-E6 and i-E8. These findings emphasize the importance of optimizing reducibility and balance of acid-base active sites to achieve durable, low-temperature DRM over Ni/CeO₂–TiO₂–CuxO catalysts.
Keywords
Dry Reforming of Methane (DRM), Ni Catalysts, CeO₂–TiO₂–CuxO, Sol-Gel Hydrothermal Synthesis, Chelation-Coupled Impregnation, Low-Temperature Catalysis
Published online 6/20/2026, 7 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Rama Samer AL MASALMEH, Aseel HUSSIEN, Dinesh SHETTY, Kyriaki POLYCHRONOPOULOU, Maguy ABI JAOUDE, Performance of Ni/CeO₂–TiO₂–CuxO catalysts in the dry reforming of methane, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 67, pp 441-447, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904176-59
The article was published as article 59 of the book Climate Action and Sustainability
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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