Catalytic methanol oxidation over copper: Observation of reaction-induced nanoscale restructuring by means of in situ time-resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy

The catalytically active copper phase for the partial oxidation of methanol is studied by means of time-resolved extended X-ray absorption fine struct ure (EXAFS) spectroscopy combined with the detection of the catalytic turno ver. It is found that the active form of the copper is a strained nanocryst alline form of the metal. The metal is no longer made up from large crystal lites but contains a defect structure in which oxygen is already intercalat ed.