Reactions of Surface Peroxides Contribute to Rates and Selectivities for C₂H₄ Epoxidation on Silver.

ABSTRACT: Partial oxidation of ethylene over silver catalysts produces more than 30 million metric tons of ethylene oxide (EO) annually. However, the form of active silver surfaces, reactive oxygen species, and dominant pathways of this chemical reaction remains controversial despite decades of research. Here, we use operando Raman spectroscopy and transient kinetic measurements to demonstrate that higher coverages of peroxide species, present only upon Ag oxide surfaces that form in situ, correlate with greater selectivities to EO. Ab initio calculations reveal that the reconstructed Ag oxides preferentially stabilize diatomic oxygen species (peroxide and superoxide) under relevant conditions, and these species contribute to the selective formation of EO. The dominant reaction

SUBMITTER: Chen CT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11744664 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature