| The reactivity of allyl alcohol and 1-propanol has been studied with TDS and XPS on the polar, Cu+ -terminated, Cu2O(100) surface. Allyl alcohol reacts on the (100) surface to give selective and nonselective oxidation products (acrolein, CO, CO2, H2O), an isomerization product (propionaldehyde), and a reduction product (propene). 1-Propanol also reacts on the (100) surface to give selective and nonselective oxidation products (acrolein, propionaldehyde, CO, CO2, H2O) and a reduction product (propene). Both alcohols dissociatively adsorb to form alkoxides. The alkoxide species undergo hydride elimination on the carbon alpha to the oxygen to form the corresponding aldehydes. The acrolein and propionaldehyde formed from the alcohols are linked by a common surface enolate intermediate which explains the similarity in C3 products observed from the two alcohols. A low-temperature reaction to propene is attributed to pathways involving C-O bond scission from unsaturated surface oxygenates to give a surface allyl. Hydrogenation of the resulting allyl produces propene at low temperature. |