HCHO, CH3CHO and (CH3)2CO are shown to adsorb molecularly on a clean Cu(110) surface at 80 K and transform to different surface species on increasing the temperature. On a Cu(110) surface modified with aluminum, adsorption of HCHO, CH3CHO and (CH3)2CO is dissociative. The two aldehydes undergo chemical transformations on a Cu(110) surface covered with atomic oxygen.
