Effects of Thermal Activation on the Electrocatalysis of the Ru(0001) Surface

Variable temperature in situ FTIR spectroscopy has been used as the primary tool to investigate the effects of temperature(10 to 50 ℃) on formaldehyde dissociative adsorption and electro oxidation on the Ru(0001) electrode in perchloric acid solution, and the results were interpreted in terms of the surface chemistry of the Ru(0001) electrode and compared to those obtained during our previous studies on the adsorption of CO under the same conditions. It was found that formaldehyde did undergo dissociative adsorption, even at -200 mV vs . Ag/AgCl, to form linear(CO L) and 3 fold hollow(CO H) binding CO adsorbates. In contrast to the adsorption of CO, it was found that increasing the temperature to 50 ℃ markedly increased the amount of CO adsorbates formed on the Ru(0001) surface from the adsorption of formaldehyde. On increasing the potential, the electro oxidation of the CO adsorbates to CO 2 took place via reaction with the active (1×1) O oxide. A significant increase in the surface reactivity was observed on the RuO 2(100) phase formed at higher potentials. Formic acid was detected as a partial oxidation product during formaldehyde electro oxidation. The data obtained at 50 ℃ are markedly different from those collected at 10 and 25 ℃ in terms of the amount of both CO 2 and formic acid formed and the adsorbed CO L and CO H species observed. These results were rationalized by the thermal effects on both the loosening of the CO adlayer and the activation of surface oxide on increasing the temperature.