CINNAMALDEHYDE HYDROGENATION - DUAL CATALYTIC CHEMISTRY OF IRON-RHODIUM GRAFOIL CATALYSTS

Work in our laboratory has shown that many bimetallic particles, including Fe/Rh, Fe/Ir and Pd/Ag, have multiple phase structures that can be accessed through the proper sequence of treatments. Corresponding to the multiple bulk phase structures are a variety of surface structures and compositions. In this study it is shown for Fe/Rh that the different surfaces have completely different selectivities for cinnamaldehyde hydrogenation. Moreover, it is clear that the catalytic behavior of the alloy is not a simple linear combination of the behaviors observed for the parent metals, indicating that alloys may prove to have unique properties for low-temperature selective hydrogenations.