Surface state of a silver catalyst for ethylene glycol oxidation

The surface state of electrolytic silver before and after treatment with a reaction mixture in the course of ethylene glycol oxidation to glyoxal was studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that electrophilic forms of adsorbed oxygen, which participate in the selective conversion of ethylene glycol, were formed on the surface of electrolytic silver crystals under exposure to oxygen under conditions similar to catalytic process conditions. The treatment of the catalyst with a reaction mixture resulted in the formation of filamentous carbon deposition products. A mechanism of formation of carbon-containing products was proposed.