Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology (Oct 2017)

Ester formation at the liquid–solid interface

  • Nguyen T. N. Ha,
  • Thiruvancheril G. Gopakumar,
  • Nguyen D. C. Yen,
  • Carola Mende,
  • Lars Smykalla,
  • Maik Schlesinger,
  • Roy Buschbeck,
  • Tobias Rüffer,
  • Heinrich Lang,
  • Michael Mehring,
  • Michael Hietschold

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.8.213
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 1
pp. 2139 – 2150

Abstract

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A chemical reaction (esterification) within a molecular monolayer at the liquid–solid interface without any catalyst was studied using ambient scanning tunneling microscopy. The monolayer consisted of a regular array of two species, an organic acid (trimesic acid) and an alcohol (undecan-1-ol or decan-1-ol), coadsorbed out of a solution of the acid within the alcohol at the interface of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) (0001) substrate. The monoester was observed promptly after reaching a threshold either related to the increased packing density of the adsorbate layer (which can be controlled by the concentration of the trimesic acid within the alcoholic solution via sonication or extended stirring) or by reaching a threshold with regards to the deposition temperature. Evidence that esterification takes place directly at the liquid–solid interface was strongly supported.

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