A Theoretical Study on the Mechanisms Involved in Catalytic Dehydrogenation and Dehydration of Isopropanol on SrTiO₃

The dehydrogenation and dehydration of isopropanol on the SrO and TiO₂ terminated surfaces, of the SrTiO₃ perovskite, is addressed by periodic DFT calculations in order to shed light on the involved mechanisms. The results show that the dehydrogenation occurs through a mechanism involving the dissociative adsorption of the alcohol on the SrO terminated surface, followed the nucleophilic attack of a hydride species on the previously adsorbed hydrogen atom to form molecular hydrogen and the corresponding carbonyl compound. The dehydration instead occurs by the molecular adsorption of the alcohol on the TiO₂ terminated surface, followed by various possible E1 elimination pathways leading to the formation of the corresponding alkene and a water molecule. The article reports a thorough study on the involved mechanisms, including identification of the transition states and intermediates along the reaction paths, and evaluation of the respective activation barriers, as well. Thus, this article provides significant insights about the mechanisms of dehydrogenation and dehydration of isopropanol on the SrTiO₃ , not reported earlier in literature. The calculated barrier energies are in good agreement with experimental values.