Transformation of some saturated hydrocarbons on iridium, rhodium and ruthenium blacks

Abstract

The adsorption and deuterium exchange of methane and ethane and the hydrogenolysis and isomerization of ethane, butanes and some C₅ hydrocarbons have been investigated on Ru, Rh and Ir blacks. Product distribution patterns, together with data on chemisorption and deuterium exchange, suggest that surface transformations of hydrocarbons into strongly/multiply bonded species easily take place. The initial multiple rupture of hydrocarbons is a result of the slow product desorption, that seems to be the rate limiting step of the hydrogenolysis on these metals.