(111e) Lanthanum Nickel Perovskite-Based Catalysts for Hydrogen Production Via Ammonia Decomposition

The global energy economy is increasingly focused on decarbonizing fuels. Hydrogen is promising as a zero-carbon fuel due to benign emissions and a high energy density, but its large-scale deployment is limited in part due to high costs associated with transportation and storage. Among alternatives, liquid ammonia is promising due to its high energy density and hydrogen content by volume. Catalysts are required to decompose ammonia to hydrogen, with the current state of the art being Ru based catalysts, whose high activity is offset by being an expensive transition metal. As such, low-cost catalysts are required to proceed to industrial scale hydrogen production from ammonia. In this work, a promising alternative of Ni/La2O3 is investigated. Self-combustion synthesis is used to make the LaNiO3 perovskite, which is then reduced under H2 to form the final nickel catalyst. This final catalyst has a 26.8 wt % nickel loading and displayed good dispersion, with nickel nanocrystals on the order of ~10 nm. In this presentation we will discuss the performance of this catalyst under both differential and integral conditions as a function of temperature, pressure, and space velocity. Preliminary results are promising as performance at T = 400 °C and 5 bar approached that of a commercial Ru/Al2O3 control. We will expand on the discussion of activity and correlate performance with catalyst characterization including physisorption, chemisorption, and temperature programmed reduction.