An investigation of the reaction dynamics of the catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide and methanol on platinum

An investigation of the catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide and methanol in a gaseous flow on a polycrystalline platinum surface was conducted utilizing infrared diode laser absorption spectroscopy to measure the internal energy of the nascent carbon dioxide and mass spectrometry to monitor the stoichiometry. The results indicate that carbon dioxide generated from the catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide can arise from two different reaction pathways and the carbon dioxide generated from the catalytic oxidation of methanol can arise from three, two of which are identical to the pathways found in carbon monoxide oxidation. Which of these carbon dioxide producing pathways is favored during the catalytic oxidation is independent of the total reactant flow but dependent on the temperature of the platinum surface and on oxygen to fuel ratio of the introduced reactants.