Density functional theory study of ethanol decomposition reaction over Ni/α-Al2O3(0001) surface

Autor: Ya-chin Cheng, 程雅琴
Rok vydání: 2008
Druh dokumentu: 學位論文 ; thesis
Popis: 96
Ethanol decomposition on clean α-Al2O3 (0001) and Ni/α-Al2O3 (0001) surface was studied using periodic DFT calculations. Our results are compared with the available experimental findings of ethanol steam reforming reaction. For n Ni atoms (n=3–4) deposition on α-Al2O3(0001) surface, the preferential structure is forming cluster rather than dispersion on surface. Triangle Ni3 cluster adsorption on 2 × 2 α-Al2O3(0001) surface is used to represent Ni/α-Al2O3(0001) surface. The considered possible pathways for ethanol decomposition on clean α-Al2O3 (0001) and Ni/α-Al2O3 (0001) surface include dehydrogenation and C-C bond cleavage. Clean α-Al2O3 (0001) surface favors the reaction of ethanol dehydration to ethylene or leading to stable intermediate (CH2CHO) which finally occupies the active site of surface. Ni/α-Al2O3 (0001) surface shows high activity to inhibit coke formation, one feasible channel leading to C-C bond breaking was proposed. The C-C bond in CH2CO intermediate can be weaken via transforming the adsorption structure to increase the coordination number of the two carbon atoms with the surface of Ni cluster. The CH2CH2O(a) → CH2CHO (a) + H(a) reaction is the rate-determining step for the overall reaction (‡E = 1.20 eV). CO oxidation on Ni/α-Al2O3 (0001) surface is also investigated and the DOS analysis for CO adsorption on Ni bridge site shows that the interaction is mainly contributed from CO(5σ)-Ni charge donation and Ni(d)-2π* backdonation.
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