Dehydrogenation properties of ZnO and the impact of gold nanoparticles on the process

• Catalytic and surface properties of pure and surface-doped with gold nanoparticles zinc oxide.
• Analysis of the catalytic transformation of n-butyl alcohol towards ketone or an ester.
• Mechanism of catalytic transformation base on the dehydrogenation or bimolecular condensation.
• Development of the transformation mechanism and explanation of the impact of gold nanoparticles on the kinetics.

The article presents the results of catalytic and surface properties of pure zinc oxide synthesized by hydrothermal method and surface-doped with gold nanoparticles. As a test reaction, the catalytic transformation of n-butyl alcohol towards the dehydrogenation or bimolecular condensation of symmetric ketone or an ester was studied. The tested materials catalyse both consecutive reactions, wherein the transformation towards the ketone is dependent on the presence of surface oxygen vacancies, whose concentration depends on the temperature. In turn, the transformation to the ester occurs in the presence of gold nanoparticles deposited on the surface of zinc oxide. The difference in work function of electrons from these materials create a change in the electron concentration in the surface area and will shift the balance of the coupling reaction of hydrogen with lattice oxygen, which prefers the formation of aldehyde and ester. The results were compared with the catalytic properties of other previously studied oxide systems in this group of changes. This analysis enabled the development of the mechanism of transformation and explanation of the impact of gold on the kinetics of the process.

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