Ni-based catalysts supported on bentonite, Al2O3 and SiO2 were prepared and characterized by the techniques of BET, XRD, TPR, H2-TPD. Benzene hydrogenation was chosen as a probe reaction to evaluate the catalytic activity and the results shown that bentonite supporting Ni catalyst(Ni/Bentonite) was more active than catalysts supported on Al2O3 and SiO2 in benzene hydrogenation. XRD and hydrogen chemisorption analyses indicated that the higher activity of Ni/Bentonite could be associated with the smaller particle sizes and better dispersion of Ni. The strong interaction between Ni and bentonite support might prevent the growth of Ni particles, as evidenced by TPR results. TPD analysis demonstrated that Ni/Bentonite adsorbed more hydrogen under reaction condition, thus resulting in its higher activity.
