Methanol on Anatase TiO₂ (101): Mechanistic Insights into Photocatalysis.

ABSTRACT: The photoactivity of methanol adsorbed on the anatase TiO₂ (101) surface was studied by a combination of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS), and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Isolated methanol molecules adsorbed at the anatase (101) surface show a negligible photoactivity. Two ways of methanol activation were found. First, methoxy groups formed by reaction of methanol with coadsorbed O₂ molecules or terminal OH groups are photoactive, and they turn into formaldehyde upon UV illumination. The methoxy species show an unusual C 1s core-level shift of 1.4 eV compared to methanol; their chemical assignment was verified by DFT calculations with inclusion of final-state effects.

SUBMITTER: Setvin M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5634753 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature