Characterisation of the structure of adsorbates - An in situ DRIFTS-study of the partial oxidation of unsaturated aldehydes on Mo/V oxide catalysts

Mo/V oxides are interesting catalyst materials for the selective partial oxidation of unsaturated aldehydes (acrolein and methacrolein) to the corresponding carboxylic acids. Two catalyst systems - a mixed oxide and a heteropolyacid salt were investigated by in situ DRIFT-spectroscopy. Using a novel DRIFTS cell, in which both the catalyst powder and the reference (KBr) were in the same reaction chamber, we are able to detect different adsorbates of (meth)acrolein and (meth)acrylic acid under reaction gases. The investigations showed that in the case of the adsorption of acrolein and methacrolein a significant difference in the structure of corresponding adsorbates could not be proved. This indicates that the reaction mechanism of the selective partial oxidation should be the same for both aldehydes. With these kind of investigations we gain access to a deeper insight into the reaction mechanism. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.