Ni₃Sn intermetallic compound has the potential to serve as a catalyst for methanol decomposition. However, the catalytic stability of Ni₃Sn and the resulting mechanism that governs methanol decomposition has not been elucidated thoroughly. Herein, isothermal tests were conducted to probe the methanol decomposition on unsupported Ni₃Sn and Ni nanoparticles synthesized by a thermal plasma process. Ni₃Sn exhibited higher selectivities for H₂ and CO, more stable catalytic activity, and a higher resistance to carbon deposition than Ni. Synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction and surface analyses revealed the high phase stability of Ni₃Sn during methanol decomposition. Density functional theory calculations indicated that methanol decomposition on Ni₃Sn surface preferentially proceeded through OH bond cleavage, followed by CH bond cleavage in the produced intermediates. The activation energies of CH₃O and CO dissociation were higher on Ni₃Sn than that on Ni surface, which was believed to account for the higher selectivity of Ni₃Sn toward methanol decomposition.

Ni ₃ Sn金属间化合物具有用作甲醇分解催化剂的潜力。然而，尚未充分阐明Ni ₃ Sn的催化稳定性和控制甲醇分解的所得机理。在此，进行等温测试以探测甲醇在通过热等离子体工艺合成的未负载的Ni ₃ Sn和Ni纳米颗粒上的分解。与Ni相比，Ni ₃ Sn对H ₂和CO的选择性更高，催化活性更稳定，并且对碳沉积的抵抗力更高。同步辐射X射线衍射和表面分析表明Ni _3的高相稳定性甲醇分解过程中的锡。密度泛函理论计算表明，Ni ₃ Sn表面上的甲醇分解优先通过O H键断裂而进行，然后在生成的中间体中进行C H键断裂。Ni ₃ Sn上的CH ₃ O和CO解离的活化能比Ni表面上的高，这被认为是Ni ₃ Sn对甲醇分解的更高选择性。