Supported Au nanoparticles have been shown to be capable of highly selective hydrogenation catalysis. However, catalytic activity is limited by the weak ability of Au to dissociate molecular hydrogen and leads to a requirement to use high pressures of hydrogen gas in such processes. A promising alternative approach, which operates efficiently at 1 bar pressure, utilizes the Cu-catalysed dehydrogenation of a secondary alcohol (2-butanol) to supply hydrogen for the desired hydrogenation process – in this case the selective conversion of furfural to furfuryl alcohol over Au. Optimization of this type of catalytic system is facilitated by a detailed understanding of the surface chemistry of each reagent over Au, Cu and Cu/Au surfaces including ordered surface alloys. A combination of complementary surface characterization techniques including scanning tunnelling microscopy, surface vibrational spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and temperature programmed desorption have been employed to investigate the influence of surface composition on the adsorption and thermal behavior of 2-butanol and furfural on Cu/Au surfaces.

Influence of structure and composition on the surface chemistry of bimetallic Cu/Au model catalysts

256th National Meeting (2018)

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