Hydrogenation of segregated carbon and adsorbed acetylene on iron

Monolayers with segregated carbon and/or adsorbed acetylene on iron foils were prepared in vacuum and characterized by their C 1s XPS spectra. The subsequent hydrogenation of these layers in 1 bar H₂ at 500–560 K produced substantial amounts of higher molecular weight hydrocarbons, up to butane, in support of a chain growth mechanism not involving molecular CO.