A series of ZnO-Al2O3 catalysts with various ZnO/(ZnO + Al2O3) molar ratios have been developed for hydrogen production by dimethyl ether (DME) steam reforming within microchannel reactor. The catalysts were characterized by N-2 adsorption-desorption, X-ray diffraction and temperature programmed desorption of NH3. It was found that the catalytic activity was strongly dependent on the catalyst composition. The overall DME reforming rate was maximized over the catalyst with ZnO/(ZnO + Al2O3) molar ratio of 0.4, and the highest H-2 space time yield was 315 mol h(-1).kg(cat)(-1) at 460 degrees C. A bi-functional mechanism involving catalytic active site coupling has been proposed to account for the phenomena observed. An optimized bi-functional DME reforming catalyst should accommodate the acid sites and methanol steam reforming sites with a proper balance to promote DME steam reforming, whereas all undesired reactions should be impeded without sacrificing activity. This work suggests that an appropriate catalyst composition is mandatory for preparing good-performance and inexpensive ZnO-Al2O3 catalysts for the sustainable conversion of DME into H-2-rich reformate. Copyright (C) 2012, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.