Heats of interaction of hydrogen with gold and platinum powders and its effect on the subsequent adsorptions of oxygen and noble gases

Exposure of pure gold powders to hydrogen flow at 125 °C and atmospheric pressure causes heat evolution accompanied by hydrogen adsorption. The exposure takes place in a flow-through microcalorimeter, in which the metal powders are purged by nitrogen flow used as an inert carrier gas. The adsorbed hydrogen is slowly desorbed by nitrogen flow. The heats of hydrogen adsorption and its uptake by the gold powder are greatly increased by its sequential treatments with micromole quantities of oxygen and noble gases, such as helium and argon. This increase does not take place if the gold treatment is confined only to oxygen, or only to pure noble gases. The radically increased hydrogen adsorption by gold is caused by a combination of its treatments with oxygen and the noble gases. Similar results were obtained with pure platinum powder exposed to hydrogen at room temperatures. Gold powder containing adsorbed hydrogen reacts very strongly with molecular oxygen/argon mixtures, generating heats of adsorption several times higher than the heat of formation of water. The heat evolution is very rapid and is not accompanied by the formation of water. These intense interactions are not observed after complete desorption of hydrogen from the gold surfaces.     

Impact of potassium on the heats of adsorption of adsorbed CO species on supported Pt particles by using the AEIR method

The heats of adsorption at several coverages of the linear and bridged CO species (denoted L and B, respectively) adsorbed on the Pt⁰ sites of the 2.9 wt% Pt/10% K/Al₂O₃ catalyst are determined using the Adsorption Equilibrium Infrared spectroscopy method. The addition of K on 2.9% Pt/Al₂O₃ modifies significantly the adsorption of CO on the Pt particles: (a) the ratio L/B is decreased from 8.4 to 1, (b) a new adsorbed CO species is detected with an IR band at 1763 cm⁻¹, (c) the heats of adsorption of L and B CO species are significantly altered and the positions of their IR bands are shifted. The heats of adsorption of L CO species are decreased: i.e. 206 and 105 kJ/mol at low coverages on Pt/Al₂O₃ and Pt/K/Al₂O₃ respectively. Two B CO species denoted B1 and B2, with different heats of adsorption are observed on Pt/K/Al₂O₃. The heats of adsorption of B2 CO species (major B CO species) are significantly larger than those measured in the absence of K: i.e. 94 and 160 kJ/mol at low coverages on Pt/Al₂O₃ and Pt/K/Al₂O₃ respectively, whereas those of B1 CO species (minor species) are similar: 90 kJ/mol at low coverages. These values are consistent with the qualitative High Resolution Electron Energy Loss Spectrometry literature data on Pt(1 1 1) modified by potassium.     

Adsorption and dissociation of ammonia on Au(1 1 1) surface: A density functional theory study

Periodic density functional theory (DFT) calculations using plane waves had been performed to systematically investigate the stable adsorption amine and its dehydrogenated reaction on Au(1 1 1) surface. The equilibrium configuration including on top, bridge, and hollow (fcc and hcp) sites had been determined by relaxation of the system. The adsorption both NH₃ on top site and NH₂ on bridge site is favorable on Au(1 1 1) surface, while the adsorption of NH on hollow (fcc) site is preferred. The adsorbates are adsorbed on the gold surface with the interaction between p orbital of adsorbate and the d orbital of gold atoms. The interaction between adsorbate and gold slab is more evident on the first layer than on any others. Furthermore, the dissociation reaction of NH₃ on clean gold surface, as well as on the pre-covered oxygen atom and pre-covered hydroxyl group surface had been investigated. The results show that the dehydrogenated reaction energy barrier on the pre-covered oxygen gold surface is lower. The adsorbed O can promote the dehydrogenation of amine. Additionally, OH as the product of the NH₃ dissociation reaction participates in continuous dehydrogenation reaction, and the reaction energy barrier is the lowest (22.77 kJ/mol). The results indicated that OH_ads play a key role in the dehydrogenated reaction on Au(1 1 1) surface.     

Electron microscopy and EXAFS studies on oxide-supported gold-silver nanoparticles prepared by flame spray pyrolysis

Gold and gold-silver nanoparticles prepared by flame spray pyrolysis (FSP) were characterized by electron microscopy, in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XANES and EXAFS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and their catalytic activity in CO oxidation. Within this one-step flame-synthesis procedure, precursor solutions of dimethyl gold(III) acetylacetonate and silver(I) benzoate together with the corresponding precursor of the silica, iron oxide or titania support, were sprayed and combusted. In order to prepare small metal particles, a low noble metal loading was required. A loading of 0.1-1 wt.% of Au and Ag resulted in 1-6 nm particles. The size of the noble metal particles increased with higher loadings of gold and particularly silver. Both scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) combined with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) studies proved the formation of mixed Au-Ag particles. In case of 1% Au-1% Ag/SiO₂, TEM combined with electron spectroscopic imaging (ESI) using an imaging filter could be used in addition to prove the presence of silver and gold in the same noble metal particle. CO oxidation in the presence of hydrogen was chosen as a test reaction sensitive to small gold particles. Both the influence of the particle size and the alloying of gold and silver were reflected in the CO oxidation activity.     

Hydrogen and noble gas interactions with iron nano-flakes

Exposure of pure iron nano-flakes to hydrogen generates a high heat evolution associated with hydrogen uptakes shown by flow-through microcalorimetry. A large part of the hydrogen was found to be irreversibly absorbed by the iron flakes at 220 °C and atmospheric pressure, but an increased desorption of hydrogen was achieved by noble gases, such as helium and argon. Thus the iron surfaces displayed strong affinity for hydrogen, but also, surprisingly, for the noble gases, which were found to be able to displace hydrogen from the iron surfaces.The uptake of hydrogen by the iron flakes was observed to reach 9 wt.% after exposure for 5 h, which may be of interest in hydrogen storage applications. Desorption with the help of argon may provide an acceptable method of hydrogen recovery.     

Roles of γ-Fe2O3 in fly ash for mercury removal: Results of density functional theory study

First-principle calculations based on density function theory (DFT) are used to clarify the roles of γ-Fe₂O₃ in fly ash for removing mercury from coal-fired flue gases. In this study, the structure of key surface of γ-Fe₂O₃ is modeled and spin-polarized periodic boundary conditions with the partial relaxation of atom positions are employed. Binding energies of Hg on γ-Fe₂O₃ (0 0 1) perfect and defective surfaces are calculated for different adsorption sites and the potential adsorption sites are predicted. Additionally, electronic structure is examined to better understand the binding mechanism. It is found that mercury is preferably adsorbed on the bridge site of γ-Fe₂O₃ (0 0 1) perfect surface, with binding energy of −54.3 kJ/mol. The much stronger binding occurs at oxygen vacancy surface with binding energy of −134.6 kJ/mol. The calculations also show that the formation of hybridized orbital between Hg and Fe atom of γ-Fe₂O₃ (0 0 1) is responsible for the relatively strong interaction of mercury with the solid surface, which suggests that the presently described processes are all noncatalytic in nature. However, this is a reflection more of mercury's amalgamation ability.     

Ethylene hydrogenation on Ni(1 0 0) surface

The hydrogenation of ethylene on Ni(1 0 0) surface has been studied by TDS. The decrease in the bonding energy with increasing coverage is revealed for both of adsorbed hydrogen and ethylene by the shift of desorption to lower temperatures. Ethane formation is only observed on the preadsorbed hydrogen coverage exceeding 0.5 monolayer (ML), coupled with the growth of H₂ shoulder peak at lower temperatures. Further increase of H coverage to saturation reduces the bonding energy of subsequently adsorbed ethylene by 15 kJ/mol and decreases the saturation coverage of ethylene to about one-third on the clean surface. This leads to the shift of ethane desorption from 250 to 220 K and an appearance of additional ethane peak at 180 K. The latter ethane formation coincides with the hydrogenation of surface ethyl species derived from ethyl iodide as a precursor. It indicates that the rate of ethyl formation on the surface would be comparable to that of subsequent hydrogen addition to the surface ethyl species in the hydrogenation of ethylene when the preadsorbed hydrogen coverage approaches 1.0 ML.     

The influence of a small amount of active sites on the adsorption kinetics of nitrogen on ruthenium

Recently, Dahl et al. [S. Dahl, A. Logadottir, R.C. Egeberg, J.H. Larsen, I. Chorkendorff, E. Törnqvist, J.K. Nørskov, Phys. Rev. Lett. 83 (1999) 1814; S. Dahl, E. Törnqvist, I. Chorkendorff, J. Catal. 192 (2000) 381] have proposed very interesting hypothesis that the rate of dissociation and adsorption of nitrogen on Ru(0 0 0 1) facet is totally dominated by the presence of a small amount of step sites on Ru(0 0 0 1) terraces. Following this idea, a kinetic model, based on applying the Statistical Rate Theory approach, was developed in order to explain if such mechanism is able to explain the observed features of the system N₂/Ru(0 0 0 1). As a result, it was stated that the activation barrier for adsorption on the active (step) sites is equal to 36 kJ/mol; in turn, the adsorption energy of nitrogen atoms on the active sites is 43 kJ/mol. It implies that the rate of adsorption via the active sites is much faster than direct adsorption on the three-fold hollow sites; moreover, the occupation of the active sites is always close to zero at the investigated temperatures, so they are not blocked and may act as an indirect channel for adsorption. Thus, the rate of nitrogen adsorption on Ru(0 0 0 1) surface is governed by the rate of diffusion of nitrogen atoms from the active sites into the three-fold hollow sites. The analysis of thermodesorption spectra revealed an important role of repulsive interactions between the N atoms adsorbed on the hollow sites, the associated interaction parameter between nearest neighbors was estimated to be 5 kJ/mol. The presence of small amount of gold on Ru(0 0 0 1), apart of blocking the active sites, seems to remove the repulsion between nitrogen atoms.     

Reaction mechanism of ammonia oxidation over RuO2(1 1 0): A combined theory/experiment approach

Combining state-of-the-art density functional theory (DFT) calculations with high resolution core level shift spectroscopy experiments we explored the reaction mechanism of the ammonia oxidation reaction over RuO₂(1 1 0). The high catalytic activity of RuO₂(1 1 0) is traced to the low activation energies for the successive hydrogen abstractions of ammonia by on-top O (less than 73 kJ/mol) and the low activation barrier for the recombination of adsorbed O and N (77 kJ/mol) to form adsorbed NO. The NO desorption is activated by 121 kJ/mol and represents therefore the rate determining step in the ammonia oxidation reaction over RuO₂ (1 1 0).     

Oxygen adsorption and oxidation reactions on Au(2 1 1) surfaces: Exposures using O2 at high pressures and ozone (O3) in UHV

Nanosized gold particles supported on reducible metal oxides have been reported to show high catalytic activity toward CO oxidation at low temperature. This has generated great scientific and technological interest, and there have been many proposals to explain this unusual activity. One intriguing explanation that can be tested is that of Nørskov and coworkers [Catal. Lett. 64 (2000) 101] who suggested that the “unusually large catalytic activity of highly-dispersed Au particles may in part be due to high step densities on the small particles and/or strain effects due to the mismatch at the Au-support interface”. In particular, their calculations indicated that the Au(2 1 1) stepped surface would be much more reactive towards O₂ dissociative adsorption and CO adsorption than the Au(1 1 1) surface. We have now studied the adsorption of O₂ and O₃ (ozone) on an Au(2 1 1) stepped surface. We find that molecular oxygen (O₂) was not activated to dissociate and produce oxygen adatoms on the stepped Au(2 1 1) surface even under high-pressure (700 Torr) conditions with the sample at 300-450 K. Step sites do bind oxygen adatoms more tightly than do terrace sites, and this was probed by using temperature programmed desorption (TPD) of O₂ following ozone (O₃) exposures to produce oxygen adatoms up to a saturation coverage of θ_O = 0.90 ML. In the low-coverage regime (θ_O ? 0.15 ML), the O₂ TPD peak at 540 K, which does not shift with coverage, is attributed to oxygen adatoms that are bound at the steps on the Au(2 1 1) surface. At higher coverages, an additional lower temperature desorption peak that shifts from 515 to 530 K at saturation coverage is attributed to oxygen adsorbed on the (1 1 1) terrace sites of the Au(2 1 1) surface. Although the desorption kinetics are likely to be quite complex, a simple Redhead analysis gives an estimate of the desorption activation energy, E_d, for the step-adsorbed oxygen of 34 kcal/mol and that for oxygen at the terraces near saturation coverage of 33 kcal/mol, values that are similar to others reported on Au surfaces. Low Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED) indicates an oxygen-induced step doubling on the Au(2 1 1) surface at low-coverages (θ_O = 0.08-0.17 ML) and extensive disruption of the 2D ordering at the surface for saturation coverages of oxygen (θ_O ? 0.9 ML). Overall, our results indicate that unstrained step sites on Au(2 1 1) surfaces of dispersed Au nanoparticles do not account for the novel reactivity of supported Au catalysts for CO oxidation.     

Thermal and photochemical reactivity of oxygen atoms on gold nanocluster surfaces

Reduction of oxidized gold nanoclusters by exposures to foreign gases and irradiation of UV photons has been investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Gold nanoclusters with narrow size distributions protected by alkanethiolate ligands were deposited on a TiO₂(1 1 0) surface with dip coating. Oxygen plasma etching was used for removal of alkanethiolate ligands and oxidization of gold clusters. The oxidized gold clusters were exposed to CO, C₂H₂, C₂H₄, H₂, and hydrogen atoms. Although, C₂H₄ and H₂ did not show any indications of reduction of oxidized gold clusters, CO, C₂H₂, and hydrogen atoms reduced the oxides on gold cluster surfaces. Among them, hydrogen atoms were most effective for reduction. Irradiation of UV photons around 400 nm could also reduce the oxidized gold clusters. The photochemical reduction mechanism was proposed as follows. The photo-reduction was initiated by electronic excitation of gold clusters and oxygen atoms activated reacted with carbon atoms at the surfaces of gold clusters. Carbon species were likely absorbed in gold clusters or remained at the boundaries between gold clusters when gold clusters agglomerated during oxygen plasma exposures. As the photochemical reduction progressed, carbon atoms segregated to the surfaces of gold clusters.     

Electrical conducting properties of proton-conducting terbium-doped strontium cerate membrane

The electrical conduction behavior of SrCe_0.95Tb_0.05O_3−δ (SCTb) was investigated in different gases at high temperatures. In air, oxygen or nitrogen SCTb shows small electronic-hole conduction below 800°C and oxygen ionic conduction over 800°C with activation energy about 30 kJ/mol and 164–181 kJ/mol respectively. SCTb becomes a protonic conductor in hydrogen or methane in 500–900°C, with the proton conductivity in the range of 10⁻³–10⁻² S/cm, two to three orders of magnitude higher than electronic or oxygen ionic conductivity of SCTb in air or oxygen. The activation energy for protonic conduction in SCTb is 49 kJ/mol in methane and 54 kJ/mol in hydrogen. The electrical conductivity of SCTb in water vapor-saturated nitrogen, air or oxygen is higher than in corresponding gas without water vapor. Presence of water vapor does not affect the electrical conduction of SCTb in hydrogen or methane. Gas permeation measurements show that SCTb membrane is impermeable to hydrogen when the membrane is exposed to hydrogen or methane upstream and nitrogen or oxygen downstream. These results confirm that SCTb is a pure protonic conductor with very low electronic and oxygen ionic conductivity. SCTb will find applications as a high temperature electrolyte in fuel cells or hydrogen sensors.     

Reactivity screening of silica

As a screening of the chemical activity of silica [SiO₂/Si(1 0 0)], which is one of the most often used supports for nanostructures, thermal desorption spectroscopy data have been gathered for a variety of gases such as n-nonane, n-hexane, n-butane, iso-butane, ethane, CO₂, CO, O₂, and H/H₂. Whereas, the alkanes with chain lengths larger than three adsorb with large binding energies (E_d = 50-70 kJ/mol), the activity towards the other probe molecules is negligible (<24 kJ/mol) down to adsorption temperatures of 95 K. The adsorption of n- and iso-butane has additionally been studied by molecular beam scattering and follows standard precursor mediated adsorption dynamics.     

The surface stress of the (1 1 0) and (1 0 0) surfaces of rutile and the effect of water adsorbents

The surface stress on clean TiO₂ (1 1 0) and (1 0 0) surfaces, and those with four types of adsorbent - (i) molecularly adsorbed water, (ii) dissociatively adsorbed water, (iii) dissociatively adsorbed water at an oxygen vacancy, and (iv) adsorbed hydrogen - was investigated in the framework of density functional theory using a slab model. The calculations were intended to rationalize the effect of the artificially introduced stress that occurs in experimentally photoinduced hydrophilicity. Tensile stress was observed for a clean (1 1 0) surface, and a mixture of tensile and compressive stress for a clean (1 0 0) surface. The adsorbate-induced surface stresses were analyzed in terms of the sixfold coordinated character of the surface titanium atoms, hydrogen bonds between the adsorbents and the bridging oxygen atoms, and the change in electron density in the vicinity of the surface.     

The adsorption of ethylene on Au/Pd(1 1 1) alloy surfaces

The adsorption of ethylene on gold-palladium alloys formed on a Pd(1 1 1) surface is investigated using a combination of temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and reflection absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS). Various alloy compositions are obtained by depositing four monolayers of gold on a clean Pd(1 1 1) surface and annealing to various temperatures. For gold coverages greater than ∼0.7, ethylene adsorbs primarily on gold sites, desorbing with an activation energy of less than 55 kJ/mol. At gold coverages between ∼0.5 and ∼0.7, ethylene is detected on palladium sites in a π-bonded configuration (with a σ-π parameter of ∼0.1) desorbing with an activation energy of between ∼57 and 62 kJ/mol. Further reducing the gold coverage leads to an almost linear increase in the desorption activation energy of ethylene with increasing palladium content until it eventually reaches a value of ∼76 kJ/mol found for ethylene on clean Pd(1 1 1). A corresponding increase in the σ-π parameter is also found as the gold coverage decreases reaching a value of ∼0.8, assigned to di-σ-bonded ethylene as found on clean Pd(1 1 1).     

Heat release of carbon particle formation from hydrogen-free precursors behind shock waves

The process of heat release during carbon particle formation and growth after pyrolysis of carbon suboxide C₃O₂ behind shock waves was investigated. For this goal, temperature and optical density of gas-particle mixtures initially consisting of 3% C₃O₂ + 5% CO₂ in Ar were measured as a function of time. The temperature was determined by two-channel emission-absorption spectroscopy at λ = 2.7 ± 0.4 μm, corresponding to the CO₂ (1,0,1) vibrational band. In the range of initial temperatures behind the shock waves from 1600 up to 2200 K a significant heating of the mixture during particle formation and growth was observed that increased towards higher temperatures. The analysis of the obtained data in combination with previous results about the temperature dependence of the particle size shows a decrease of the heat release of condensation from ∼200 kJ/mol per atom for particles containing ∼1000 atoms to ∼50 kJ/mol per atom for particle containing ∼10⁶ atoms.     

Heats of displacement of hydrogen from palladium by noble gases

It has been observed that noble gases, such as helium, neon and argon produce heat evolution when contacted with Pd powder partially saturated with hydrogen. These phenomena have been studied with flow-through adsorption microcalorimetry. The observed exothermic effects are comparable to those usually associated with the heat of sorption of hydrogen in palladium. It is suggested that the noble gases displace the adsorbed H species from the surface of Pd, causing their reabsorption in the Pd lattice with the exothermic heat of PdH bonds formation, or the formation of H₂, both heat evolutions being observed with a flow-through microcalorimeter.     

Au/TiO2/Ru(0 0 0 1) model catalysts and their interaction with CO

Au/TiO₂/Ru(0 0 0 1) model catalysts and their interaction with CO were investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy and different surface spectroscopies. Thin titanium oxide films were prepared by Ti deposition on Ru(0 0 0 1) in an O₂ atmosphere and subsequent annealing in O₂. By optimizing the conditions for deposition and post-treatment, smooth films were obtained either as fully oxidized TiO₂ or as partly reduced TiO_x, depending on the preparation conditions. CO adsorbed molecularly on both oxidized and reduced TiO₂, with slightly stronger bonding on the reduced films. Model catalyst surfaces were prepared by depositing submonolayer quantities of Au on the films and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy. From X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, a weak interaction between the Au and the TiO₂ substrate was found. At 100 K CO adsorption occurred on both the TiO₂ film and on the Au nanoparticles. CO desorbed from the Au particles with activation energies between 53 and 65 kJ/mol, depending on the Au coverage. If the Au deposit was annealed to 770 K prior to CO exposure, the CO adsorption energy decreased significantly. STM measurements revealed that the Au particles grow upon annealing, but are not encapsulated by TiO_x suboxides. The higher CO adsorption energy observed for smaller Au coverages and before annealing is attributed to a significantly stronger interaction of CO with mono- and bilayer Au islands, while for higher particles, the adsorption energy becomes more bulk-like. The implications of these effects on the known particle size effects in CO oxidation over supported Au/TiO₂ catalysts are discussed.     

The chemistry of ethylene on MoAl alloy thin films formed on dehydroxylated alumina: Hydrogenation, dehydrogenation and H-D exchange reactions

The chemistry of ethylene adsorbed on a thin MoAl layer grown in ultrahigh vacuum on a thin alumina film is studied using a combination of temperature-programmed desorption and X-ray, Auger and reflection absorption infrared spectroscopies. Both di-σ-bonded and a small proportion of π-bonded ethylene are found, where the di-σ-bonded ethylene has a σ/π parameter of ∼0.8 and a heat of adsorption of ∼70 kJ/mol. The ethylene self-hydrogenates to yield ethane and a small amount of methane is detected. The surface hydrogenation activation energy of di-σ-bonded ethylene is ∼65 kJ/mol, while the π-bonded species hydrogenates more easily. Adsorbed ethyl species grafted onto the surface by decomposing ethyl iodide predominantly undergo β-hydride elimination to yield ethylene. Ethyl species hydrogenate to ethane at a lower temperature than does di-σ-bonded ethylene implying that addition of hydrogen to adsorbed ethylene is slower than the rate of ethyl hydrogenation.