Oxidative Dehydrogenation on Nanocarbon: Identification and Quantification of Active Sites by Chemical Titration

Ketonic carbonyl groups are catalytic active sites for oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) reactions on carbon nanotubes. The quantity of these groups could be calculated from chemical titration with hydrazine compounds. ODH catalytic activity of nanocarbon is directly correlated with surface concentration of ketonic carbonyl groups, and the turnover frequency normalized by the number of active sites reflects the intrinsic activity of nanocarbon catalysts.