A study of the anodic oxidation of acetylene on platinum-gold alloys

The anodic oxidation of acetylene on Pt-Au alloys of four compositions (80-20, 60-40, 40-60, and 20-80 Pt-Au) was studied at 80°C in solutions of constant pH and unit normality. Currents were measured as a function of potential and partial pressure of acetylene. The effects of temperature on current in 1 N H₂SO₄ and 1 N NaOH and the coulombic efficiencies for CO₂ production were determined. The experimental results indicated that the alloys can be classified into three groups, Pt-rich, Au-rich, and intermediate compositions. A transition region (change of the mechanism) was found for the Au-rich alloys. The oxidation can be interpreted in terms of two mechanisms...The total current on the heterogeneous phases can be represented as the sum of the currents on the phases --Abstract, page ii-iii