Characterisation of silica derived from rice husk ash and nickel oxide at different composition and temperatures

Nickel supported on silica (SiO2) porous bodies have been found to be active for hydrogen and carbon in gas catalyst applications. In this study, the compatibility of naturally derived SiO2 derived from rice husk ash (RHA) and nickel oxide (NiO) at variable compositions and temperatures were highlighted. The compositions of SiO2 involved in this study were 50wt% and 90wt% sintered at temperatures of 800°C, 900°C, 1000°C and 1100°C. The properties of SiO2-NiO were determined through X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and density. XRD analysis proven SiO2 derived from RHA was found to be amorphous and that mixtures of SiO2-NiO at all composition and temperatures yielded no tertiary phase of SiO2 and NiO. Density analyses indicated that density increased with increasing sintering temperature. Thus, this proves SiO2 derived from RHA is compatible with NiO even up to 1100°C, which indicates probability of applying SiO2 in gas catalyst application.