COLL 77 |
| Masatoshi Osawa, Atsushi Miki, Yan Xia Chen, Hidetada Sakai, and Shen Ye. Catalysis Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 060-0811, Japan |
| It is generally accepted that methanol can be oxidized to CO2 via the so-called dual pathways mechanism, i.e., via adsorbed CO and non-CO reactive intermediates. The formation of strongly adsorbed CO has been well confirmed, but no consensus has been reached on the reactive intermediates in the non-CO pathway. In the present study, we have applied surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (SEIRAS) to investigate the reactive intermediates in the non-CO pathway and found that formate is adsorbed on Pt electrodes during the methanol oxidation. Despite the extremely high sensitivity of SEIRAS, no other non-CO reactive intermediates proposed in the earlier studies were detected. The band intensity of formate had an intimate correlation with the oxidation current. Using isotope-labeled methanol (12CH3OH and 13CH3OH), the adsorbed formate was found to be oxidized off from the electrode surface immediately. These results suggest strongly that formate is a reactive intermediate in the non-CO pathway. |
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Electrochemistry and Surface Science Symposium in Memory of Mike Weaver
Division of Colloid and Surface Chemistry |