Search

Recently, non-noble intermetallic compounds have shown promising catalytic performances in the partial hydrogenation of alkynes and alkenes. In this work, the properties of γ-Al4Cu9(1 1 0) toward the gas-phase hydrogenation of butadiene were investigated at total pressures of 2-20 mbar and temperatures of 110-180 °C. The model catalyst is active and 100 % selective to butenes. Moreover, although less active than Al13Fe4(0 1 0), which was evaluated previously for the same reaction, it is more selective and more stable. The combination of catalytic tests with pre- and postreaction Auger electron spectroscopy measurements and comparative tests with Cu(1 1 0) shows that Cu governs the reaction on γ-Al4Cu9(1 1 0). However, the lower activity of the (more Cu-rich) sputtered Al4Cu9 surface with respect to the annealed one and the differences between Al4Cu9 and Cu surfaces in terms of butene isomer distribution, butene conversion kinetics, and sensitivity to poisons, demonstrate the unique character of the intermetallic compound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the first time, to the best of our knowledge, a realistic approach for deriving an estimate by superior values of the surface energy of complex metallic alloys based on aluminium is proposed. It turns out that the surface energy of quasicrystals lies in the range 0.5–0.8 J/m2, in contrast to pure aluminium (1.15 J/m2) orλ-Al13Fe4(2.0 J/m2) andω-Al7Cu2Fe (2.2 J/m2) intermetallics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]