3D Printing of Carbon/Ceramic Conductive Composites as Joule‐heating Catalyst Support for Hydrogen Production

Electrified support offers unique advantages as internal heat sources for chemical energy conversion processes. However, the application of current Joule-heating catalyst supports is limited due to the lack of flexibility in design and fabrication. In this paper, porous carbon/ceramic composite structures with three-dimensional conductive networks were prepared by the photopolymerization 3D printing technology and carbonization process. The process parameters affecting the formation of these conductive networks and their electrical properties were systematically analyzed. The electro-thermal performance of these supports was evaluated, focusing on their ability to provide energy for chemical reactions. The experimental results show that the supports have excellent electro-thermal stability, with a start-stop response time of less than 100 s at around 300 °C. And the heating performance of them maintained consistent after multiple cycles. Hydrogen production performance was tested in a microchannel reactor for methanol steam reforming (MSR), achieving a maximum methanol conversion rate of 98 % and a hydrogen production rate of 101 mmol/h. Compared to traditional external heating methods, the power consumption density was reduced by 76.3 %, and the reforming efficiency increased by 187.2 %. This research demonstrates a viable fabrication method for complex and customizable Joule-heating catalyst supports and offer a new strategy for low-power hydrogen production via MSR.