Selective hydrogenation of the CO bond in acrolein through the architecture of bimetallic surface structures

In the current study we have performed experimental studies and density functional theory (DFT) modeling to investigate the selective hydrogenation of the CO bond in acrolein on two bimetallic surface structures, the subsurface Pt-Ni-Pt(111) and surface Ni-Pt-Pt(111). We have observed for the first time the production of the desirable unsaturated alcohol (2-propenol) on Pt-Ni-Pt(111) under ultra-high vacuum conditions. Furthermore, our DFT modeling revealed a general trend in the binding energy and bonding configuration of acrolein with the surface d-band center of Pt-Ni-Pt(111), Ni-Pt-Pt(111), and Pt(111), suggesting the possibility of using the value of the surface d-band center as a parameter to predict other bimetallic surfaces for the selective hydrogenation of acrolein.