This paper reports the effect of noble metal addition (Ru, Pd) to supported
Ni catalysts towards the reaction of CO2 reforming of methane. On the basi
s of FT-IR spectra of adsorbed CO, H-2 chemisorption and TPR measurements i
t has been proposed that the different behaviour of the Ni-based bimetallic
catalysts can be related to different metal-metal interactions occurring o
n the catalysts. In particular, the strong improvement in the activity and
stability observed in the case of ex-nitrate Ni-Ru catalysts has been attri
buted to an enrichment of the catalyst surface in nickel due to the formati
on of Ni-Ru clusters with the surface mainly covered by Ni. This leads to a
n increase in the metallic dispersion of Ni and favours the formation of mo
re reactive intermediate carbonaceous species.