| AVS 63rd International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Fundamental Discoveries in Heterogeneous Catalysis Focus Topic | Wednesday Sessions |
| Session HC+NS+SS-WeA |
| Session: | Nanoscale Surface Structures in Heterogeneously Catalyzed Reactions |
| Presenter: | Ashleigh Baber, James Madison University |
| Authors: | A.E. Baber, James Madison University D.T. Boyle, James Madison University W. Andahazy, James Madison University V. Lam, James Madison University D. Schlosser, James Madison University N. Tosti, James Madison University J. Wilke, James Madison University |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
The fundamental investigation of the catalytic chemistry of ethanol at interfaces is important for many fields including the automotive industry due to the use of ethanol as a fuel. The redox chemistry of small alcohols, including methanol and propanol, has been studied on Au(111) supported TiO2 nanoparticles, yet the active site for the chemistry has not yet been elucidated. Here, the systematic study of ethanol has been investigated on Au(111) and TiO2/Au(111) via temperature programmed desorption in an effort to gain insight on the interfacial role of the reactivity for ethanol, as a function of titania coverage. Ex situ atomic force microscopy was used to image the gold–supported titania particles, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to confirm the presence of titania on the surface. The presence of TiO2 nanoparticles on Au(111), ~25 nm in diameter, led to the catalytic conversion of ethanol to acetaldehyde at temperatures greater than 400 K. The interaction of ethanol with Au(111)–supported TiO2 nanoparticles is markedly different than its interaction with the individual counterparts: bulk titania and gold, which both lead to the desorption of molecular ethanol at temperatures lower than 400 K.