Self-oscillatory heterogeneous recombination of hydrogen atoms and nonequilibrium desorption of molecules from the surface (Teflon)

The channel of the accommodation of the energy of a heterogeneous chemical reaction (recombination of hydrogen atoms) related to vibrational V-V exchange between excited chemical reaction products and adsorption layer molecules (H₂O, HDO, D₂O, and H₂) was studied by the method of modulated molecular beams. The chemical reaction was found to proceed in an oscillatory mode caused by the nonequilibrium character of its elementary steps. The participation of adsorbed molecules in accommodation was studied by analyzing nonequilibrium desorption of these molecules. An isotope effect was observed in nonequilibrium desorption. The kinetic mechanism of the reaction and the micromechanism of elementary reaction events, which determine the “physical” mechanism of catalysis in the system under study, are discussed.