Abstract
Methanol adsorption on ion-sputtered Pt(111) surface exhibiting high concentration of vacancy islands and on (2 x 1) Pt(110) single crystal were investigated by means of photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) and thermal desorption spectroscopy. The measurements showed that methanol adsorbed at low temperature on sputtered Pt(111) and on (2 x 1) Pt(110) surfaces decomposed upon heating.
The PES data of methanol adsorption were compared to the data of CO adsorbed on the same Pt single crystal surfaces. In the case of the sputtered Pt(111) surface, the dehydrogenation of H(x)CO intermediates is followed by the CO bond breakage.
On the (2 x 1) Pt(110) surface, carbon monoxide, as product of methanol decomposition, desorbed molecularly without appearance of any traces of atomic carbon. By comparing both platinum surfaces we conclude that methanol decomposition occurs at higher temperature on sputtered Pt(111) than on (2 x 1) Pt(110).
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