Identification of a vibrational Stark shift within an adsorbate layer: NH3 on Ru(001)

Using high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy we investigated the coverage-dependent vibrational properties of ammonia chemisorbed on Ru(001). With increasing coverage we find a drastic red shift of 100 cm⁻¹ for the ammonia symmetric deformation mode. Based on results for ammonia layers containing different isotopic species, such as NH₃ as well as partially and totally deuterated ND_xH_3−x, this red shift can be identified as a dominantly static shift (no dynamical coupling). Based on DFT model calculations, the origin of this shift can be understood as a Stark shift due to the electric fields produced by the static NH₃ dipoles within the adlayer. Calculations for isolated ammonia and for ammonia adsorbed on small Ru clusters, both in the fields of neighboring electric dipoles, can well reproduce the sign and magnitude of the observed red shift and for this molecular system allow a clear distinction between pure electrostatic and adsorption-induced (chemical) effects. We show that as a consequence of the electric field, the ammonia molecule opens the H–N–H angle and a softening of the symmetric deformation mode occurs.     

Tetrakis(diethylamido) titanium (TDEAT) interactions with SiO2 and Cu substrates

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is used to characterize the chemical interactions of tetrakis(diethylamido) titanium (TDEAT) with SiO₂ and Cu surfaces under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) conditions. XPS studies show that TDEAT dissociatively chemisorbs on SiO₂ at room temperature or above, resulting in Ti---N bond scission, and Ti---O bond formation. No Ti carbide or Si carbide formation is observed. In the presence of co-adsorbed NH₃, Ti---N bond formation is enhanced and is stable at temperature up to 900 K in UHV. Continuous exposures of TDEAT on SiO₂ at 500 K produce both Ti oxides and nitride formation. The presence of an overpressure of NH₃ enhances Ti nitride formation. In contrast, TDEAT physisorbed on Cu at 120 K and annealed to 500 K results in desorption of Ti-containing species from the surface. Successive exposures of TDEAT on Cu at 500 K yield a Ti-alkyl reaction product. The presence of NH₃ does not significantly alter TDEAT interaction with Cu.     

Adsorption and reactions of CH2I2 on Ru(001) surface

The adsorption and dissociation of CH₂I₂ were studied at 110 K with the aim of generating CH₂ species on the Ru(001) surface. The methods used included X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS), temperature programmed desorption (TPD), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and work function measurements. Adsorption of CH₂I₂ is characterized by a work function decrease (0.96 eV at monolayer), indicating that adsorbed CH₂I₂ has a positive outward dipole moment. Three adsorption states were distinguished: a multilayer (T_p=200 K), a weakly bonded state (T_p=220 K) and an irreversibly adsorbed state. A new feature is the formation of CH₃I, which desorbs with T_p=160 K. The adsorption of CH₂I₂ at 110 K is dissociative at submonolayer, but molecular at higher coverages. Dissociation of the monolayer to CH₂ and I proceeded at 198–230 K, as indicated by a shift in the I(3d_5/2) binding energy from 620.6 eV to 619.9 eV. A fraction of adsorbed CH₂ is self-hydrogenated into CH₄ (T_p=220 K), and another one is coupled to di-σ-bonded ethylene, which — instead of desorption — is converted to ethylidyne at 220–300 K. Illumination of the adsorbed CH₂I₂ initiated the dissociation of CH₂I₂ monolayer even at 110 K, and affected the reaction pathways of CH₂.     

Magnetic pair making and breaking effect of Ru in La0.7Sr0.3Mn0.9Ru0.1O3 and La0.5Sr0.5Co0.9Ru0.1O3

The substitutional effect of Ru on the magnetic and transport properties of double exchange ferromagnets, La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ and La_0.5Sr_0.5CoO₃ has been investigated. It is found that substitution of 10% Ru at the Mn site of La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ decreases the Curie temperature by 20 K than that of the parent compound. However, a large decrease in the Curie temperature, ΔT_c80 K and the system undergoes a transition from metallic state to insulating state is observed when 10% Ru is doped in La_0.5Sr_0.5CoO₃. The marginal effect of Ru in the Mn–O–Mn sublattice in comparison to the Co–O–Co sublattice could be due to the magnetic exchange interaction between Mn and Ru by virtue of the fact that Ru exhibits variable valence states, Ru⁺⁴/Ru⁺⁵. The e_g and t_2g parentage of Ru⁺⁵ is similar to Mn⁺⁴ and therefore, Ru⁺⁵ ion appears to participate in the double exchange mediated ferromagnetic (FM) interaction. On the other hand, Ruthenium (IV) ion disrupts an intermediate spin state of cobalt (Co⁺³: t_2g⁵e_g¹), forcing a double exchange FM state to anti-FM state.     

Towards the preparation of realistic model Ziegler-Natta catalysts: XPS study of the MgCl2/TiCl4 interaction with flat SiO2/Si(1 0 0)

Despite of the wide use of supported Ti based Ziegler-Natta catalysts in the olefin polymerization industry, questions concerning the role of each one of the catalyst components in the polymerization process, have not found a satisfactory answer yet. This is mainly because of the high sensitivity of these systems to oxygen and atmospheric moisture that makes their study in an atomic level rather complicated. Realistic surface science models of the pre-activated SiO₂ supported MgCl₂/TiCl₄ and TiCl₄ Ziegler-Natta catalysts were prepared by spin coating on flat conductive SiO₂/Si(1 0 0) supports under inert atmosphere. This preparation technique resembles the wet chemical impregnation which is the industrial method of the catalyst preparation. XPS analysis showed that the catalyst precursor anchors on the silica surface through bonding of the Ti atoms with surface silanes or siloxanes, while Mg is attached to the Ti through chlorine bridges. Thermal treatment of the catalysts at 723 K leads to total Cl desorption when MgCl₂ is not present while a significant amount of the Ti atoms is reduced to the Ti³⁺ state.     

Interaction between CO and NH3 coadsorbed on Ru(001): its effects on the ordering in mixed adlayers and the ammonia dissociation

The coadsorption of CO and ammonia on Ru(001) has been investigated by low-energy electron diffraction (LEED), temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and high-resolution electron energy-loss spectroscopy (HREELS). The main focus has been on the interaction between different admolecules on the surface and its important role in surface reaction. Exposing CO-precovered Ru(001) to ammonia at 100 K leads to the formation of mixed ordered layers with a (2 × 2) periodicity. It was found that two types of (2 × 2) structures are formed depending on the CO precoverage. One of the (2 × 2) structures (-phase) contains one CO and two ammonia molecules per (2 × 2) unit cell and the other (β-phase) contains two CO and one ammonia. Structure models for the two phases are proposed based on vibrational spectra measured for the coadsorbed phases of CO and ammonia (¹⁵NH₃ or ND₃). TPD results suggest that the ammonia dissociation takes place on clean and CO-precovered Ru(001). The amount of dissociated ammonia decreased initially with increasing CO precoverage, passed a minimum at θ_CO = 0.25, increased with a further increase of CO coverage, and eventually reached a saturation value above θ_CO = 0.5. The dissociation of ammonia in the β−(2 × 2) structure was found to be enhanced by a factor of 4–6 as compared with the dissociation in the −(2 × 2) structure. The HREEL spectra indicated that the C_3v molecular axis of ammonia is tilted in the coadsorbed layers, the tilting being most pronounced in the β−(2 × 2) phase with a high CO partial coverage. This observation suggests that the tilting of ammonia due to the interaction with CO facilitates electron donation from Ru 4d to LUMO of ammonia, leading to the N-H bond dissociation. The microscopic model for the CO-NH₃ interaction on metal surfaces is presented.     

Effects of surface treatments and annealing on carbon-based molecular sieve membranes for gas separation

A new method in preparing carbon-based molecular sieve (CMS) membranes for gas separation has been proposed. Carbon-based films are deposited on porous Al₂O₃ disks using hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) by remote inductively coupled plasma (ICP) chemical vapor deposition (CVD). After treating the film with ion bombardment and subsequent pyrolysis at a high temperature, carbon-based molecule sieve membranes can be obtained, exhibiting a very high H₂/N₂ selectivity around 100 and an extremely high permeance of H₂ around 1.5 × 10⁻⁶ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹ at 298 K. The O₂/N₂ selectivity could reach 5.4 with the O₂ permeance of 2 × 10⁻⁷ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹ at 423 K.

During surface treatments, HMDSO ions were found to be more effective than CH₄, Ar, O₂ and N₂ ions to improve the selectivity and permeance. Short and optimized surface treatment periods were required for high efficiency. Without pyrolysis, surface treatments alone greatly reduced the H₂ and N₂ permeances and had no effect on the selectivity. Besides, without any surface treatment, pyrolysis alone greatly increased the H₂ and N₂ permeances, but had no improvement on the selectivity, owing to the creation of large pores by desorption of carbon. A combination of surface treatment and pyrolysis is necessary for simultaneously enhancing the permeance and the selectivity of CMS membranes, very different from the conventional pore-plugging mechanism in typical CVD.     

Viscoelastic investigation by ultrasonic shear waves of liquid eutectic mixture methylurea–ammonium sulfamate

Shear impedance of the liquid eutectic mixture CH₃NHCONH₂–NH₄SO₃NH₂ was studied in the temperature range 291.7–313.2 K by using ultrasonic shear waves in the frequency range 12–80 MHz. Ultrasonic technique allowed the determination of the real part of the complex mechanical impedance and of the complex rigidity modulus. The relaxation region was shifted towards higher frequency in comparison to the Maxwell model and was fitted by the modified BEL model.     

Interactions of NH3, coadsorbed with PF3, on Ru(001)

NH₃, coadsorbed with PF₃, on Ru(001) has been studied by temperature programmed desorption (TPD) and high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS). HREELS shows that the P---F stretching frequency decreases by 60–90 cm⁻¹ in the presence of NH₃. This is explained by the enhancement, in the presence of NH₃, of backdonation of electrons from the metal to the antibonding orbital of the PF₃. The PF₃ bending frequency does not change in the presence of NH₃. This indicates that the σ donation of electrons from PF₃ to the metal substrate is not influenced by coadsorbed NH₃. The intensity of the PF₃ vibrational bands, particularly the PF₃ bending mode, decreases drastically in the presence of NH₃. We interpret this in terms of electric field shielding created by the coadsorbed NH₃ and/or the result of direct interactions between NH₃ and PF₃.     

(NH4)2SO4，NH4NO3和(NH4)2SO4/NH4NO3混合气溶胶吸湿质量增长因子的快速测量方法

气溶胶颗粒的吸湿性决定了其尺寸、浓度、化学组成以及相态,从而显著影响着全球气候、大气异相化学以及人类健康。运用在线、原位、连续扫描衰减全反射傅里叶变换红外光谱（ATR-FTIR）技术, 结合线性湿度（RH）控制系统,实现了RH连续变化条件下气溶胶FTIR-ATR光谱的快速测量。根据水弯曲振动谱带（~1 640 cm-1）峰面积随RH的变化,得到了(NH₄)₂SO₄,NH₄NO₃和(NH₄)₂SO₄/NH₄NO₃混合气溶胶的质量增长因子（MGFs）、潮解点（DRH）和风化点（ERH）。与气溶胶的E-AIM模型预测值相比较,实验结果表现出良好的一致性,证实该方法是一种测量大气气溶胶MGFs,ERH和DRH的快速测量方法。     

催化前驱体亚硝酰硝酸钌中杂质元素的质谱分析

钌催化前驱体是影响负载型钌催化剂催化性能最重要因素。前驱体中的部分杂质会对催化性能产生抑制作用，尤其是S，P，Cl，As等杂质元素含量过高会降低催化剂的活性，严重时会造成催化剂中毒；因此，必须严格控制催化前驱体中杂质元素的含量。建立了快速准确测定催化前驱体亚硝酰硝酸钌（Ru(NO)(NO₃)₃）中杂质元素的分析方法。Ru(NO)(NO₃)₃经稀硝酸溶解后采用电感耦合等离子体串联质谱（ICP-MS/MS）直接测定其中的8个杂质元素（P，S，Ti，V，Cr，Mn，Fe，As）。为防止Ru(NO)(NO₃)₃溶液水解形成Ru(NO)(NO₃)x(OH)_3-x，采用稀硝酸介质有效维持了样品溶液的稳定性。在MS/MS模式下，通过一级四极杆质量过滤器（Q₁）控制进入碰撞/反应池（CRC）的离子，仅允许与待测元素具有相同质荷比（m/z）的离子进入CRC，从而将来自样品基质和等离子气Ar所形成的干扰离子阻止在CRC外，消除了大量质谱干扰。通过向CRC内通入O₂为反应气，目标离子P+，S+，Ti+，V+，As+与O₂的反应为放热过程（31P++O₂→31P16O++O，ΔH_r=-3.17 eV；32S++O₂→32S16O++O，ΔH_r=-0.34 eV；48Ti++O₂→48Ti16O++O，ΔH_r=-1.63 eV；51V++O₂→51V16O++O，ΔH_r=-0.85 eV；75As++O₂→75As16O++O，ΔH_r=-0.63 eV），能自发反应生成氧化物离子；目标离子Cr+，Mn+与O₂的反应为吸热过程（52Cr++ O₂→52Cr16O++O，ΔH_r=+1.38 eV；55Mn++O₂→55Mn16O++O，ΔH_r=+2.15 eV）。为促进Cr+，Mn+与O₂发生反应，通过调整CRC的工作参数，设置八极杆偏置电压为较大的负电压，使Cr+和Mn+在与O₂反应前被加速，提高Cr+和Mn+的动能，促进了反应的发生，通过吸热反应生成氧化物离子；而P+，S+，Ti+，V+，Cr+，Mn+，As+干扰离子在CRC内不能与O₂发生反应，仍然保持原始的m/z。通过二级四极杆质量过滤器（Q₂）将这些干扰离子阻止在外，仅允许所形成的氧化物离子进入检测器，几乎完全消除了元素P，S，Ti，V，Cr，Mn，As的所有质谱干扰。NH₃因含一对孤对电子而具有高反应活性，能与很多金属离子反应形成团簇离子。通过向CRC内通入NH₃/He为反应气，目标离子Fe+与NH₃发生质量转移反应，在所形成多个团簇离子中，Fe(NH₃)+₂的丰度最高且无干扰，通过NH₃质量转移法消除干扰。结果显示，8个元素在0～500 μg·L-1范围内具有良好的线性关系，线性相关系数≥0.999 8。方法的检出限为0.29～485 ng·L-1，按所建立的方法分析了实际样品中8个杂质元素的含量，各元素的加标回收率为93.2%～107.5%，相对标准偏差（RSD）≤3.9%。方法具有样品处理简单、分析速度快和精密度高的特点，适合催化前驱体亚硝酰硝酸钌中多个杂质元素的准确测定，为制备负载型钌催化剂提供了质量保障。     

Enhancement of dissociation by metal-support interaction: reaction of NO on Rh supported by ceria films of controlled oxidation state

Highly oriented thin films of cerium oxide with variable ratio of Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ were grown on Ru(0 0 0 1) single crystal surface and loaded with a fixed, low coverage of Rh. The chemisorption of NO on the resulting model catalyst was studied by soft X-ray photoemission which yielded the relative quantities of N containing species on the surface as a function of temperature, and by thermal desorption which yielded the relative yields of NO and N₂ desorbed. It is found that the ability of the reduced Rh clusters to dissociate NO depends upon the oxidation state of the ceria upon which it is deposited, and for highly reduced ceria surfaces effectively 100% of Rh-adsorbed NO dissociates by 350 K. Possible causes of this surprising behavior are discussed.     

Interaction of CO2 with Cs-promoted Fe(110) as compared to Fe(110)/K+CO2

The interaction of CO₂ with Cs-promoted Fe(110) at 85 K as well as temperature-dependent reactions between 100 and 700 K have been studied by means of ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Several surface species could be detected at 85 K, i.e. carbon monoxide (CO), carbonate (COⁿ⁻₃), physisorbed linear carbon dioxide (CO^lin₂) and very small amounts of oxidic oxygen (O_ox). An oxalate species (C₂O^m−₄) could not be identified definitively, but from comparison with the literature there is evidence that C₂O^m−₄ is present. Increasing the temperature after saturation with CO₂ leads to a complicated reaction behaviour. CO₂ either desorbs or dissociates into CO and COⁿ⁻₃ or forms C₂O^m−₄ at temperatures between 85 and 160 K. Above 160 K C₂O^m−₄, decomposes in parallel reactions into CO₂, COⁿ⁻₃ and CO. Above 320 K, adsorbed CO either desorbs into the gas phase or dissociates into C and O. In the temperature region between 500 and 700 K a recombination of C and O to CO and the desorption of Cs take place. As in the case of Fe(110)/K+CO₂, at high alkali coverages two carbonate species could be detected which dissociate upon heating at different temperatures. The system Fe(110)/Cs+CO₂ is proved to be very similar to the system Fe(110)/K+CO₂.     

The sticking and dissociation of NH3 on W(110): a three-state model

The kinetics of the adsorption of NH₃ on W(110) and its subsequent dissociation have been investigated using molecular beam techniques and temperature programmed desorption (TPD) for surface temperatures ranging from 140 to 700 K. NH₃ shows a wide desorption peak around 270 K and a smaller peak at 170 K while H₂ and N₂, produced by dissociation, desorbed at 550 and 1350 K, respectively, with kinetic parameters similar to those reported for H and N generated by adsorption of H₂ and N₂. At normal incidence and for a surface temperature of 140 K, the NH₃ sticking coefficient was found to decrease from unity at a beam energy of 0.8 kcal/mol to 0.5 for a beam energy of 5.4 kcal/mol. The sticking coefficient generally decreases with surface temperature to a value of 0.05 at 700 K, but, for a 5.4 kcal/mol beam, it exhibits a relative minimum near 300 K. The reflection coefficient of NH₃, for an angle of incidence of 49°, increases with temperature and incident beam energy in agreement with the sticking measurements. The TPD peak positions, sticking and reflection data are all well reproduced by a three-state model based on simple kinetics. The model assumes that NH₃ initially traps in a molecular state and that dissociation occurs by thermal activation into an intermediate state. At no temperature is the sticking probability enhanced by increasing the kinetic energy of the incident molecules and there is no evidence for a direct dissociation channel which has a translational energy barrier less than 5.4 kcal/mol.     

Structure determination, magnetic and optical properties of a new chromium(II) thioantimonate, [Cr((NH2CH2CH2)3N)]Sb4S7

The chromium(II) antimony(III) sulphide, [Cr((NH₂CH₂CH₂)₃N)]Sb₄S₇, was synthesised under solvothermal conditions from the reaction of Sb₂S₃, Cr and S dissolved in tris(2-aminoethyl)amine (tren) at 438 K. The products were characterised by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, elemental analysis, SQUID magnetometry and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The compound crystallises in the monoclinic space group P2₁/n with a=7.9756(7), b=10.5191(9), c=25.880(2) Å and β=90.864(5)°. Alternating SbS₃³⁻ trigonal pyramids and Sb₃S₆³⁻ semi-cubes generate Sb₄S₇²⁻ chains which are directly bonded to Cr(tren)²⁺ pendant units. The effective magnetic moment of 4.94(6)μ_B shows a negligible orbital contribution, in agreement with expectations for Cr(II):d⁴ in a ⁵A ground state. The measured band gap of 2.14(3) eV is consistent with a correlation between optical band gap and framework density that is established from analysis of a wide range of antimony sulphides.     

Antiferromagnetically coupled multilayers of (Co90Fe10 tF/Ru tRu)×N and (Ni81Fe19 tF/Ru tRu)×N prepared by ion beam deposition

This work describes multilayers of Co₉₀Fe₁₀ t_F/Ru t_Ru/Co₉₀Fe₁₀ t_F and Ni₈₁Fe₁₉ t_F/Ru t_Ru/Ni₈₁Fe₁₉ t_F (20 Åt_F200 Å) prepared at ambient temperature by ion beam deposition on Si/SiO₂ 3 kÅ substrates. The samples exhibited a maximum antiferromagnetic coupling with t_Ru=3.2 Å and M–H curves characterized by zero remanent magnetic moment and enhanced saturation field. Antiferromagnetic peaks were present with t_Ru17 and 30 Å.     

Electrical and magnetic properties of polyaniline/Fe3O4 nanostructures

We report on electrical and magnetic properties of polyaniline (PANI) nanotubes (150 nm in diameter) and PANI/Fe₃O₄ nanowires (140 nm in diameter) containing Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles with a typical size of 12 nm. These systems were prepared by a template-free method. The conductivity of the nanostructures is 10⁻¹–10⁻² S/cm; and the temperature dependent resistivity follows a ln ρT^−1/2 law. The composites (6 and 20 wt% of Fe₃O₄) show a large negative magnetoresistance compared with that of pure PANI nanotubes and a considerably lower saturated magnetization (M_s=3.45 emu/g at 300 K and 4.21 emu/g at 4 K) compared with the values measured from bulk magnetite (M_s=84 emu/g) and pure Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (M_s=65 emu/g). AC magnetic susceptibility was also measured. It is found that the peak position of the AC susceptibility of the nanocomposites shifts to a higher temperature (>245 K) compared with that of pure Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (190–200 K). These results suggest that interactions between the polymer matrix and nanoparticles take place in these nanocomposites.     

Dielectric and modulus behavior of LiFe1/2Ni1/2VO4 ceramics

The polycrystalline sample of LiFe_1/2Ni_1/2VO₄ was prepared by a standard solid-state reaction technique and confirmed by X-ray diffractometry. LiFe_1/2Ni_1/2VO₄ has orthorhombic crystal structure whose dielectric and electric modulus properties were studied over a wide frequency range (100 Hz–1 MHz) at different temperatures (296–623 K) using a complex impedance spectroscopy (CIS) technique. The frequency and temperature dependence of dielectric constant (ε_r) and tangent loss (tan δ) of LiFe_1/2Ni_1/2VO₄ are studied. The variation of ε_r as a function frequency at different temperatures exhibits a dispersive behavior at low frequencies. The variation of the ε_r as a function of temperature at different frequencies shows the dielectric anomaly in ε_r at 498 K with maximum value of dielectric constant 274.49 and 96.86 at 100 kHz and 1 MHz, respectively. Modulus analysis was carried out to understand the mechanism of the electrical transport process, which indicates the non-exponential type of conductivity relaxation in the material. The activation energy calculated from electric modulus spectra is 0.38 eV.     

Standing waves, clustering, and phase waves in 1D simulations of kinetic relaxation oscillations in NO+NH3 on Pt(1 0 0) coupled by diffusion

The Lombardo–Imbihl–Fink (LFI) ODE model of the NO+NH₃ reaction on a Pt(1 0 0) surface shows stable relaxation oscillations with very sharp transitions for temperatures T between 404 and 433 K. Here we study numerically the effect of linear diffusive coupling of these oscillators in one spatial dimension. Depending on the parameters and initial conditions we find a rich variety of spatio-temporal patterns which we group into four main regimes: bulk oscillations (BOs), standing waves (SW), phase clusters (PC), and phase waves (PW). Two key ingredients for SW and PC are identified, namely the relaxation type of the ODE oscillations and a nonlocal (and nonglobal) coupling due to relatively fast diffusion of the kinetically slaved variables NH₃ and H. In particular, the latter replaces the global coupling through the gas phase used to obtain SW and PC in models of related surface reactions. The PW exist only under the assumption of (relatively) slow diffusion of NH₃ and H.     

Temperature dependence of fluorescence decay rates of mono-valent-cation uranyl nitrates

Fluorescence decay rates, fluorescence and absorption spectra of seven mono-valent-cation uranyl nitrates, XUO₂(NO₃)₃ where X = Ag, NH₄, K, Rb and Cs and Y₂UO₂(NO₃)₄ where Y = K and (CH₃)₄N, have been measured. The temperature dependence of fluorescence decay rates can be explained by assuming that the fluorescent level is always in thermal equilibrium with another level at higher energy. The decay rates are correlated with the ionic radii of the mono-valent-cations and the difference in normal coordinates of the ground and excited states.