Novel water-gas-shift reaction catalyst from iron-loaded Victorian brown coal

This paper reports on the catalytic characteristics of a novel char-supported iron catalyst for the water-gas-shift reaction. The catalyst was prepared from gasification of iron-loaded Victorian brown coal. The catalyst samples were analyzed using a variety of techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Water-gas-shift reaction experiments were carried out on a fixed-bed quartz reactor in the temperature range of 300-450 degrees C. The results indicated that iron highly dispersed in the char matrix with a particle size smaller than 50 nm demonstrated a high catalytic activity. Carbon material in the char was able to effectively prevent the agglomeration of nano-iron particles and maintained a high catalytic activity of the catalyst during water-gas-shift reaction. The effects of gasification conditions on the catalytic activity of the char catalyst were also investigated.