Preparation of the Mn-Fe-Ce/γ-Al2O3 ternary catalyst and its catalytic performance in ozone treatment of dairy farming wastewater

The quality of dairy farming wastewater in different regions is particular and different. In Southern China, the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD_Cr) and colourity of effluent from conventional dairy farming wastewater treatment processes are similar. Catalytic ozonation is a very promising technical method. In this paper, the Mn-Fe-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst was prepared via the optimized preparation method of impregnation roasting using γ-Al₂O₃ as the carrier, and this catalyst was used in the ozonation of actual dairy farming wastewater from treatment facilities. The performance of the Mn-Fe-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst on dairy farming wastewater was investigated using a simulated dynamic test. The effects of the reaction time, pH and catalyst dosage on COD_Cr and the colourity removal ratio were investigated. The results show that the optimum treatment conditions were a reaction time of 20 min, pH 9, and catalyst dosage of 15 g/L. The COD_Cr removal ratio reached 48.9% and the colourity was 95% under the optimum conditions. BOD₅/COD_Cr increased from 0.21 to 0.54 after catalytic ozonation, indicating that the biodegradability of wastewater was significantly improved. This research provides a new method and theoretical guidance for dairy farming wastewater treatment.     

Study on CuO/Al2O3 catalytic ozone treatment of acid red B solution

A CuO/Al₂O₃ catalyst was prepared using the impregnation method. The catalytic activity of CuO/Al₂O₃ for the ozonation of acid red B (ARB) in aqueous solution was studied, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal rate was an indicator for catalytic activity evaluation. The effects of initial ARB concentration, solution pH, and different oxidative degradation systems on oxidative degradation of ARB solution were studied. The CuO/Al₂O₃ catalyst was characterized using X‐ray diffractometry (XRD), N₂ adsorption desorption test, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and zero‐point charge (pH_zpc). The results show that copper species on the carrier were in the form of CuO and highly dispersed on the carrier. CuO can increase the alkalinity of the Al₂O₃ surface, and the CuO/Al₂O₃ catalyst facilitates the decomposition of O₃ into ·OH, which was beneficial for the catalytic O₃ oxidation degradation reaction. With the increase of the initial concentration of simulated wastewater, the CuO/Al₂O₃ catalytic reaction still has a high COD removal rate. Alkaline solution was of benefit to catalyze the degradation of ARB solution. When the ARB solution pH = 8.93, the degradation reaction was carried out for 40 min, the COD removal rate reached 83.2%. The degradation reaction was dominated by the hydroxyl radical (·OH) reaction.     

Preparation of Al2O3-supported nano-Cu2O catalysts for the oxidative treatment of industrial wastewater

Cuprous oxide (Cu₂O) nanoparticles supported on Al₂O₃ prepared using two different methods (hereafter referred to as catalyst I and II, respectively) were characterized by XRD and TEM. The catalytic activities of catalyst I and II during the treatment of industrial wastewater were then investigated. Specifically, the progress of the catalytic oxidation of industrial wastewater was observed by monitoring the time-dependent change in the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of industrial wastewater when the catalysts were applied. The results indicated that the catalytic activity of catalyst II was greater than that of catalyst I. Furthermore, under optimal conditions the COD removal efficiency was 94.59%. Finally, the mechanism by which the oxidative degradation of the industrial wastewater occurred could be explained based on a hydroxyl radical mechanism.     

CoAl2O4/蜂窝陶瓷催化剂的制备及其催化臭氧化性能

采用涂覆法制备了CoAl₂O₄/蜂窝陶瓷催化剂。利用X射线衍射、N₂吸附-脱附和透射电镜等方法对所制备的催化剂进行了表征,并分析了其催化臭氧化降解对苯二酚的效能。结果表明,CoAl₂O₄/蜂窝陶瓷的晶相属于典型的尖晶石结构,具有较大的比表面积、孔容和孔径,分别达到77 m²·g^-1、0.001 7 cm³·g^-1和3.9 nm。CoAl₂O₄/蜂窝陶瓷催化臭氧化对苯二酚的去除率高达81.2%,COD去除率可达47.7%。在叔丁醇存在的条件下,对苯二酚的去除率显著下降,说明CoAl₂O₄/蜂窝陶瓷催化臭氧化遵循羟基自由基机理。     

CoAl_2O_4/蜂窝陶瓷催化剂的制备及其催化臭氧化性能

采用涂覆法制备了CoAl_2O_4/蜂窝陶瓷催化剂。利用X射线衍射、N_2吸附-脱附和透射电镜等方法对所制备的催化剂进行了表征,并分析了其催化臭氧化降解对苯二酚的效能。结果表明,CoAl_2O_4/蜂窝陶瓷的晶相属于典型的尖晶石结构,具有较大的比表面积、孔容和孔径,分别达到77 m~2·g~(-1)、0.001 7 cm~3·g~(-1)和3.9 nm。CoAl_2O_4/蜂窝陶瓷催化臭氧化对苯二酚的去除率高达81.2%,COD去除率可达47.7%。在叔丁醇存在的条件下,对苯二酚的去除率显著下降,说明CoAl_2O_4/蜂窝陶瓷催化臭氧化遵循羟基自由基机理。     

Heterogeneous Catalysis of Ozone Using Iron–Manganese Silicate for Degradation of Acrylic Acid

Iron–manganese silicate (IMS) was synthesized by chemical coprecipitation and used as a catalyst for ozonating acrylic acid (AA) in semicontinuous flow mode. The Fe-O-Mn bond, Fe-Si, and Mn-Si binary oxide were formed in IMS on the basis of the results of XRD, FTIR, and XPS analysis. The removal efficiency of AA was highest in the IMS catalytic ozonation processes (98.9% in 15 min) compared with ozonation alone (62.7%), iron silicate (IS) catalytic ozonation (95.6%), and manganese silicate catalytic ozonation (94.8%). Meanwhile, the removal efficiencies of total organic carbon (TOC) were also improved in the IMS catalytic ozonation processes. The IMS showed high stability and ozone utilization. Additionally, H₂O₂ was formed in the process of IMS catalytic ozonation. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) analysis and radical scavenger experiments confirmed that hydroxyl radicals (•OH) were the dominant oxidants. Cl⁻, HCO₃⁻, PO₄³⁻, Ca²⁺, and Mg²⁺ in aqueous solution could adversely affect AA degradation. In the IMS catalytic ozonation of AA, the surface hydroxyl groups and Lewis acid sites played an important role.     

Optimization of multiple parameters for treatment of coking wastewater using Fenton oxidation

Present study deals with the treatment of coking wastewater (CWW) using Fenton oxidation process for the degradation of pollutants containing chemical oxygen demand (COD), phenol and cyanide. The experiments were performed in batch mode to study the effect of operating parameters like initial pH (pH_i), temperature (T), oxidant H₂O₂ amount, catalyst mass loading (Cw) and treatment time (t_R). The response surface methodology (RSM) gave optimum value of pH, H₂O₂, Cw and t_R as 3, 0.3 M, 1.85 g/L (0.0266 M) and 1.52 h. At this optimum operating condition maximum 84.66% COD, 88.46% phenol and 79.34% cyanide reduction were achieved from initial value of COD (COD_i) = 2810.0 mg/L, phenol_i = 283.0 mg/L and cyanide_i = 18.88 mg/L. Results reflect that Fenton oxidation is an effective process for the reduction of pollutants present in CWW. The CWW treated by Fenton oxidation having average value COD = 590.0 mg/L, phenol = 39.49 mg/L and cyanide = 5.2 mg/L was further treated by adsorption process as second stage treatment, and these values were reached to COD = 199.0 mg/L, phenol = 0.0 mg/L and cyanide = 2.36 mg/L. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used for the designing and optimization of the experiments. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) suggested the high regression coefficient R² = 0.999 and 0.993 for COD and phenol removal respectively. The two stage treated CWW can be recycled and reused in same industry for various purpose.     

An investigation of tebuconazole degradation using a gold electrode

Tebuconazole, a pesticide that presents risks for ecosystems, groundwater and human health, was degraded on a gold electrode as the catalyst in 0.05 M NaHCO₃ using cyclic voltammetry (CV). First, tebuconazole was characterized on the gold electrode using CV and square wave voltammetry (SWV). The gold electrode, being highly sensitive, provided linear relationships (currents vs. concentrations) in the range: (0.076–0.76 μmol dm^–3). Based on the CV measurements, the investigated process is irreversible and diffusion-controlled. The observed catalytic role of the Au electrode in the oxidation of tebuconazole and the data obtained from CV and SWV provided the experimental conditions for the degradation of tebuconazole. The degradation was performed by continuous cycling followed by gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy (GC–MS) analysis. This enabled the catalytic elimination of tebuconazole for 60 min, which promoted the use of a gold electrode as the catalyst for the degradation of environmental pollutants. The scheme of the possible mechanism of tebuconazole degradation is given.     

Electro-catalytic effect of Al2O3 supported onto activated carbon in oxidizing phenol at graphite electrode

In this work, the electro-catalytic oxidation of phenol was studied using the aluminum oxide supported onto activated carbon (Al₂O₃/AC). The later was successfully prepared by impregnating aluminum particles in the activated carbon (AC) using heat treatment. Al₂O₃/AC was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). The electro-catalytic performance of the Al₂O₃/AC for phenol oxidation was studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry, linear sweep voltammetry polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) in 0.1 mol L^?1 Na₂SO₄. It has been shown that the proposed catalyst exhibits remarkably an electro-catalytic performance toward phenol oxidation. Moreover, the oxidation peak currents are linearly dependent on the concentration of phenol in the wide ranges from 1.0 × 10^?3 mol L^?1 to 1.0 × 10^?4 mol L^?1 and 8.0 × 10^?5 mol L^?1 to 1.0 × 10^?6 mol L^?1 with a detection limit of 1.51 × 10^?7 mol L^?1 (signal (S) to noise (N) ratio, S/N = 3) and response time of 3 min. The possible interferences were evaluated in 1.0 × 10^?5 mol L^?1 of phenol. The proposed catalyst also indicated suitable repeatability and stability. Moreover, the proposed Al₂O₃/AC–CPE has been successfully applied for the phenol analysis in natural waters and olive oil samples with good recoveries.     

Highly dispersed Mn2O3−Co3O4 nanostructures on carbon matrix as heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst

This work reports the synthesis of various carbon (Vulcan XC-72 R) supported metal oxide nanostructures, such as Mn₂O₃, Co₃O₄ and Mn₂O₃−Co₃O₄ as heterogeneous Fenton-like catalysts for the degradation of organic dye pollutants, namely Rhodamine B (RB) and Congo Red (CR) in wastewater. The activity results showed that the bimetallic Mn₂O₃−Co₃O₄/C catalyst exhibits much higher activity than the monometallic Mn₂O₃/C and Co₃O₄/C catalysts for the degradation of both RB and CR pollutants, due to the synergistic properties induced by the Mn−Co and/or Mn (Co)−support interactions. The degradation efficiency of RB and CR was considerably increased with an increase of reaction temperature from 25 to 45°C. Importantly, the bimetallic Mn₂O₃−Co₃O₄/C catalyst could maintain its catalytic activity up to five successive cycles, revealing its catalytic durability for wastewater purification. The structure–activity correlations demonstrated a probable mechanism for the degradation of organic dye pollutants in wastewater, involving •OH radical as well as Mn²⁺/Mn³⁺ or Co²⁺/Co³⁺ redox couple of the Mn₂O₃−Co₃O₄/C catalyst.     

Treatment of opium alkaloid containing wastewater in sequencing batch reactor (SBR)—Effect of gamma irradiation

Aerobic biological treatment of opium alkaloid containing wastewater as well as the effect of gamma irradiation as pre-treatment was investigated. Biodegradability of raw wastewater was assessed in aerobic batch reactors and was found highly biodegradable (83–90% degradation). The effect of irradiation (40 and 140 kGy) on biodegradability was also evaluated in terms of BOD₅/COD values and results revealed that irradiation imparted no further enhancement in the biodegradability. Despite the highly biodegradable nature of wastewater, further experiments in sequencing batch reactors (SBR) revealed that the treatment operation was not possible due to sludge settleability problem observed beyond an influent COD value of 2000 mg dm^?3. Possible reasons for this problem were investigated, and the high molecular weight, large size and aromatic structure of the organic pollutants present in wastewater was thought to contribute to poor settleability. Initial efforts to solve this problem by modifying the operational conditions, such as SRT reduction, failed. However, further operational modifications including addition of phosphate buffer cured the settleability problem and influent COD was increased up to 5000 mg dm^?3. Significant COD removal efficiencies (>70%) were obtained in both SBRs fed with original and irradiated wastewaters (by 40 kGy). However, pre-irradiated wastewater provided complete thebain removal and a better settling sludge, which was thought due to degradation of complex structure by radiation application. Degradation of the structure was observed by GC/MS analyses and enhancement in filterability tests.     

Study of CuZnMOx oxides (M = Al,Zr, Ce,CeZr) for the catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 into methanol

CuO–ZnO–Al₂O₃ catalysts were synthesized by two methods, sol–gel and co-precipitation syntheses. Al₂O₃ was then substituted with other supports, such as ZrO₂, CeO₂ and CeO₂–ZrO₂ in order to have a better understanding of the support's effect. These catalysts containing 30 wt% of Cu were then tested for CO₂ hydrogenation into methanol. The effect of reaction temperature and GHSV on the catalytic behaviour was also investigated. The best results were obtained with a 30 CuO–ZnO–ZrO₂ catalyst synthesized by co-precipitation and calcined at 400 °C. This catalyst presents a good CO₂ conversion rate (23%) with 33% of methanol selectivity, leading to a methanol productivity of 331 g_MeOH.kg_cata⁻¹·h⁻¹ at 280 °C under 50 bar and a GHSV of 10,000 h⁻¹.     

CoFe2O4 with MoS2-xOy Nanosheets as a Co-catalyst for Enhanced Activation of Peroxydisulfate in Advanced Oxidation Processes

The application of advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) based on sulfate radicals for degrading persistent organic pollutants faces challenges due to the inefficient activation of peroxydisulfate (PDS) oxidant. Herein, a composite CoFe₂O₄/MoS_2-xO_y (CFM) catalyst consisting of CoFe₂O₄ nanoparticles uniformly dispersed on the nanosheets of oxygen-incorporated MoS₂ (MoS_2-xO_y) with flower-like morphology are fabricated through a facile two-step hydrothermal method, which results in the enhanced activation of PDS and a highly efficient degradation of phenolic pollutants. The oxygen-doping in MoS_2-xO_y leads to unsaturated sulfur and active sites on the surface of MoS₂ for accelerating the rate limiting step of Fe^III/Fe^II reduction cycle in PDS-CFM reaction. Aiming at the refractory organic pollutants in actual coking wastewater, CFM co-catalyst is introduced into a hydrogel made up of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and coal-tar pitch oxides (PO) to construct a multifunctional CFM@PO/PVA hydrogel. Upon hybrid CFM@PO/PVA, the coupling of the enhanced AOP with solar-driven interfacial vapor generation (SIVG) technology contributes to the degradation efficiency, the removal rate of phenol in solution and the total organic carbon in coking wastewater can reach 98 % and 91 %, respectively. The integration of heterogeneous AOPs with SIVG system provides a feasible strategy for the eco-friendly efficient purification of industrial wastewater.     

Al2O3催化剂结构对催化臭氧化活性的影响

以Al₂O₃为催化剂催化臭氧化处理邻苯二甲酸二甲酯. 通过XRD、比表面积、孔结构、FTIR和活性评价等方法对催化剂的物化性质及催化活性进行了研究, 考察了焙烧温度、成型粒径对催化剂活性的影响. 结果表明, Al₂O₃催化剂对臭氧化降解邻苯二甲酸二甲酯具有很高的催化活性, 反应120 min后, 总有机碳(TOC)的去除率从单独臭氧氧化的23.9%提高到55.1%; 焙烧温度对催化剂的活性具有很大的影响, 600 ℃催化剂催化活性最高; 随着焙烧温度的升高, Al₂O₃晶型经历了从γ-Al₂O₃到θ-Al₂O₃到α-Al₂O₃的转变, 催化剂的比表面积、焙烧得到的孔容逐渐变小, 晶体粒径变大, 表面•OH数量减少, 催化活性下降. Al₂O₃成型粒径的减小, 提高了催化剂的外比表面积, 减小了内部传质扩散的影响, 从而提高了催化活性.     

Syngas production from pyrolysis–catalytic steam reforming of waste biomass in a continuous screw kiln reactor

A two-stage continuous screw-kiln reactor was investigated for the production of synthesis gas (syngas) from the pyrolysis of biomass in the form of waste wood and subsequent catalytic steam reforming of the pyrolysis oils and gases. Four nickel based catalysts; NiO/Al₂O₃, NiO/CeO₂/Al₂O₃, NiO/SiO₂ (prepared by an incipient wetness method) and another NiO/SiO₂ (prepared by a sol–gel method), were synthesized and used in the catalytic steam reforming process. Pyrolysis of the biomass at a rapid heating rate of approximately 40 °C/s, was carried out at a pyrolysis temperature of 500 °C and the second stage reforming of the evolved pyrolysis gases was carried out with a catalytic bed kept at a temperature of 760 °C. Gases were analysed using gas chromatography while the fresh and reacted catalyst was analysed by scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, transmission electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The reactor design was shown to be effective for the pyrolysis and catalytic steam reforming of biomass with a maximum syngas yield of 54.0 wt.% produced when the sol–gel prepared NiO/SiO₂ catalyst was used, which had the highest surface area of 765 m² g⁻¹. The maximum H₂ production of 44.4 vol.% was obtained when the NiO/Al₂O₃ catalyst was used.     

Heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process for removal of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol from aqueous solutions

This research investigated the efficiency of nanosized ZnO in the catalytic ozonation of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol and determined the effect of pH on heterogeneous catalytic ozonation. Use of ozone with ZnO catalyst leads to conversion of 98.7% of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol during 5 min. In addition, it was found that in ZnO catalytic ozonation, the degradation efficiency of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol was higher at low pH conditions (pH 3.0) than high pH (pH 7–9). This result was not in accordance with ozonation alone, following which higher pH had positive effect on the degradation of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol. During the catalytic ozonation of 4-chloro-2-nitrophenol, an increase of nitrate ions in water sample solution was observed. At pH = 3, the concentration of nitrate formed during nano-ZnO catalytic ozonation was 7.08 mg L⁻¹ and the amount of total organic carbon was 54.9% after 30 min.     

Heterogeneous catalytic oxidation of chromotrope 2B with H2O2 and metal complexes supported on aluminum oxide hydroxide as catalyst

The heterogeneous catalytic oxidation of Chromotrope 2B (C2B) dye with H₂O₂ and the aluminum oxide hydroxide (AlOOH) modified with ammonia complexes of Cu^II, Co^II, Ni^II, and Cr^III (AlOOH/[Mⁿ⁺(amm)_m]) as catalysts were studied. The AlOOH/[Cu^II(amm)₄] is the most efficient catalyst and therefore it was chosen as the potential catalyst for the oxidative degradation of C2B in an aqueous solution. The AlOOH/[Cu^II(amm)₄] was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), techniques. The rate of reaction was dependent on the type of the metal complex supported on the AlOOH, initial concentration of the dye and H₂O₂, catalyst dose, pH, the concentration of NaCl, and temperature. The catalytic activity of the AlOOH/[Mⁿ⁺(amm)_m] according to the kind of metal ion decreased in the order: Cu^II > Co^II > Cr^III > Ni^II. Other catalysts consisting of the AlOOH supported with Cu^II complexed with ethylenediamine, ethanolamine, 1,3 propanediamine, and 1,4 butanediamine, (AlOOH/[Cu^II(amine)_m]), were also investigated. The activity of the (AlOOH/[Cu^II(amine)_m]) as catalyst according to the type of ligand followed the order: 1,4 butanediamine > 1,3 propanediamine > ethanolamine > ethylenediamine > ammonia. The reaction rate increased with increasing the catalyst dose, concentration of H₂O_2, C2B, and NaCl, pH, and temperature. Since the reusability results for the AlOOH/[Cu^II(amm)₄] revealed good stability over seven cycles, it can thus be considered a promising and cost-effective catalyst for the removal of harmful dyes from wastewater.     

A study on simultaneous catalytic ozonation of Hg<Superscript>0</Superscript> and NO using Mn–TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> catalyst at low flue gas temperatures

Mn–TiO₂ catalysts were utilized as an ozonation catalyst for the first time to study the simultaneous catalytic ozonation of Hg⁰ and NO at low flue gas temperatures. BET, SEM–EDS, XRD, XPS, H₂-TPR, NO _x -TPD and Hg⁰-TPD were used to characterize the catalysts. The Mn–TiO₂ catalyst, in which the molar content of metal Mn was 60%, exhibited the best catalytic activities of Hg⁰ and NO oxidation, compared with other Mn–TiO₂ catalysts. It was found that within the range of experiment, the catalytic ozonation efficiency of Hg⁰ and NO was higher than that of ozonation or catalytic oxidation. The results also showed that the presence of NO gas inhibited the catalytic ozonation of elemental mercury, and the inhibition was enhanced with the NO inlet concentration, while few elemental mercury molecules did promote the catalytic ozonation of NO. The addition of H₂O vapor promoted the catalytic ozonation of Hg⁰ and NO. In addition, 0.6Mn–TiO₂ catalyst demonstrated a good TOS and cyclic stability. The catalytic ozonation of NO and Hg⁰ on Mn–TiO₂ catalyst likely followed the Langmuir–Hinshelwood mechanism, where the hydroxyl radicals reacted with adjacently adsorbed NO molecules and elemental mercury on catalyst surface.     

Catalytic vapor-phase oxidation of 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol

The synthesis of trifluoroacetaldehyde by vapor-phase oxidation of 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol using supported vanadium catalysts was studied. Significant differences were observed in the reaction outcomes resulting from different types of catalysts. The ZrO₂- and Al₂O₃-supported catalyst demonstrated both high catalytic activity and selectivity. The addition of co-catalysts such as MoO₃ or SnO₂ improved catalytic performance (Selectivity: up to 91%; S.T.Y.: >200 g L⁻¹ h⁻¹). The experimental results on catalyst lifetime showed a marked decrease in the activity of the Al₂O₃-supported catalyst within tens of hours, while the ZrO₂-supported catalyst showed little, if any, performance alterations for 2000 h.     

Carbon Dioxide Reforming of Methane over Ni Catalysts Supported on Al2O3 Modified with La2O3, MgO, and CaO

The preparation of synthesis gas from carbon dioxide reforming of methane (CDR) has attracted increasing attention. The present review mainly focuses on CDR to produce synthesis gas over Ni/MO_x/Al₂O₃ (X = La, Mg, Ca) catalysts. From the examination of various supported nickel catalysts, the promotional effects of La₂O₃, MgO, and CaO have been found. The addition of promoters to Al₂O₃-supported nickel catalysts enhances the catalytic activity as well as stability. The catalytic performance is strongly dependent on the loading amount of promoters. For example, the highest CH₄ and CO₂ conversion were obtained when the ratios of metal M to Al were in the range of 0.04–0.06. In the case of Ni/La₂O₃/Al₂O₃ catalyst, the highest CH₄ conversion (96%) and CO₂ conversion (97%) was achieved with the catalyst (La/Al = 0.05 (atom/atom)). For Ni/CaO/Al₂O₃ catalyst, the catalyst with Ca/Al = 0.04 (atom/atom) exhibited the highest CH₄ conversion (91%) and CO₂ conversion (92%) among the catalysts with various CaO content. Also, Ni/MgO/Al₂O₃ catalyst with Mg/Al = 0.06 (atom/atom) showed the highest CH₄ conversion (89%) and CO₂ conversion (90%) among the catalysts with various Mg/Al ratios. Thus it is most likely that the optimal ratios of M to Al for the highest activities of the catalysts are related to the highly dispersed metal species. In addition, the improved catalytic performance of Al₂O₃-supported nickel catalysts promoted with metal oxides is due to the strong interaction between Ni and metal oxide, the stabilization of metal oxide on Al₂O₃ and the basic property of metal oxide to prevent carbon formation.