Influence of pH on noble metal catalysed alcohol oxidation: reaction kinetics and modelling

A dynamic, pH-dependent, electrochemical kinetic model is presented based on a detailed investigation of the mechanism of alcohol oxidation. The model adequately describes the observed pH effect by considering the alcohol dehydrogenation occurring in two parallel reaction steps, one playing a role under acidic conditions, which is independent of the hydroxyl concentration, and a second one playing a role under alkaline conditions, which is linearly dependent on the hydroxyl concentration.