Abstract:
A treatment of PdAg3/Al2O3 catalyst with CO at 250°C enhanced its activity towards the selective C2H2 hydrogenation without any noticeable losses of C2H4 selectivity. The CO-DRIFTS and XPS data acquired in situ have indicated that the observed effect arises from Pd surface segregation induced by the CO adsorption and partial transformation of isolated surface Pd1 active sites into Pd2 dimers. The catalytic performance of PdAg3/Al2O3 was found to be similar or even better as compared to the best reported catalysts.