Abstract
Production of hydrogen and biofuels via reforming of oxygenated hydrocarbons (sugars, sugar
alcohols, polyols, etc.) in the aqueous phase (APR) has attracted great interest due to increasing
environmental concerns and the national energy security policy [1,2]. Pt-Re/C has proven to be an
effective catalyst for the APR process due to its high hydrothermal stability and activity [2]. Efforts
have been made to understand the effect of Re on activity enhancement [3]. Formation of a PtRe
alloy, or close contact between the Pt and Re phases, have been proposed to account for the effect.
However, more definitive evidence is needed to clarify the structure of PtRe nanoparticles.
Moreover, studies have to date been limited to reduced catalysts; no effort has been reported on
catalysts under working conditions. Our present study has focused on investigation of the structure
of a PtRe/C catalyst activated and exposed to hydrothermal environments that are close to APR
reaction conditions.
