IR study of adsorption and decomposition of propan-2-ol on carbon and carbon-supported catalysts Original Research Article

The aim of this research is to get information on the character of the interactions between propan-2-ol on the one hand and carbons which differs in the chemical structure of their surfaces or carbon-supported metal catalysts (Pt, Ag, Cu, Ni) on the other hand. The adsorption and decomposition of propan-2-ol were investigated with in situ infrared spectroscopy. Parallel to the FTIR studies, catalytic tests were performed in a fixed bed flow reactor. Prior to impregnation the unoxidized carbon sample exhibits very low catalytic activity in the propan-2-ol decomposition while the oxidized surface of carbon, especially of a metal containing carbon, effectively promotes the propan-2-ol decomposition. Although both dehydrogenation and dehydration processes take place simultaneously, our data indicate that the decomposition of propan-2-ol proceeds mainly through dehydrogenation.