Modulating the CO methanation activity of Ni catalyst by nitrogen doped carbon

Nitrogen doping has been proved to be an effective way to modify the properties of graphene and other carbon materials. Herein, we explore a composite with nitrogen doped carbon overlayers wrapping SiC substrate as a support for Ni (Ni/CN-SiC) and evaluate its effects on the methanation activity. The results show that both the activity and stability of Ni are enhanced. Characterization with STEM, XRD, XPS, Raman and H2-TPR indicates that nitrogen doping generates more defects in the carbon overlayers, which benefit the dispersion of Ni. Furthermore, the reduction of Ni is facilitated.