Influence Impregnation Method in the Structure of Bimetallic Ni-Zn/ZrO2 Catalyst

Ni-based catalysts are an alternative to precious metal catalysts. However, monometallic Ni catalysts still have weaknesses, such as being easily deactivated and being able to agglomerate if the Ni concentration is too high. This can be overcome by adding a second metal (bimetallic catalyst) in which the structure and morphology of the bimetallic catalyst are strongly influenced by the method used. The wet-impregnation method is used to obtain a supported bimetallic catalyst where the order of metal carrying will affect the structure and morphology and is specific for each material. On the Ni-Zn/ZrO2 catalyst, which has been synthesized by co-impregnation (Cat-1) and sequentially (Cat-2) method, XRD results show that both catalysts have specific peaks of ZrO2, NiO, and ZnO. However, the Cat-2 catalyst has lower crystallinity and smaller NiO crystallite size (14.79 nm) than Cat-1 (19.45 nm). Micrograph results show that both catalysts have irregular particle shapes. Cat-1 has a smaller particle size and a more homogeneous metal dispersion than Cat-2. The elemental analysis shows that metal concentration at the surface is close to the theoretical (10%). Further research with further characterization and application to a specific chemical reaction is needed to determine which of the two catalysts perform better. This is because each reaction has specific requirements, and each catalyst will produce different results in each reaction even though they have the same properties.