Photocatalytic dehydrogenation of liquid propan-2-ol by TiO2. Part 1.—Kinetics

Abstract

An oxygen-uptake technique has been used to monitor the kinetics of photocatalytic dehydrogenation of propan-2-ol in the presence of the anatase and rutile forms of TiO₂. Variation of alcohol concentration showed that surface binding by a non-associated alcohol hydroxy group was necessary before photoconversion into propanone could take place. N.m.r. analysis of solutions of the alcohol in cyclohexane was applied to show that, under the conditions used, the rate of dehydrogenation was proportional to the concentration of free alcohol.