Relevance of Electronic Effects on the Yield of CO2 from Methanol Oxidation

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Processo FAPESP: 07/54434-0

Processo FAPESP: 11/06538-7

Processo FAPESP: 06/60769-2

The yields of products of methanol oxidation (HCHO, HCOOH, and CO2) were studied for carbon-supported PtRu nanoparticles having different amounts of alloyed and oxide phases. It is demonstrated that the increase in the Pt 5d-band vacancy enhances the production of CO2, which is not directly related with the catalytic activity for CO oxidation. Results prove the relevant role of oxides and, at the same time, shed some new light on mechanistic aspects of methanol oxidation on PtRu nanocatalysts. It is also demonstrated that extrapolating from the behavior of smooth surfaces to nanoparticle systems is not always valid.