Effect of electrochemical pretreatment on SERS and catalytic activity of Cu–Zr amorphous alloys Original Research Article

This paper presents results of electrochemical, microscopic, spectroelectrochemical (SERS) and catalytic investigations of Cu–Zr amorphous alloy ribbons aimed at increasing their catalytic activity for the dehydrogenation reaction of aliphatic alcohols. Rapid dissolution in sulphuric acid/copper sulphate solution of partially devitrified Cu–Zr ribbons resulted in a nearly twofold enhancement of their catalytic activity for dehydrogenation of 2-propanol. However, their local SERS activity on the Cu rich areas was not distinctly altered by this electrochemical pretreatment. Yet, the SERS heterogeneity of the devitrified material vanished: the SERS intensity increased considerably outside the Cu rich areas. A tentative mechanism of the effects of various electrochemical pretreatments on the surface activity is discussed.