Coverage dependence of neopentane trapping dynamics on Pt(111)

Adsorption probabilities for neopentane on Pt(111) were measured directly using supersonic molecular-beam techniques at coverages ranging from zero to monolayer saturation, incident translational energies between 18 and 110 kJ mol⁻¹ and incident angles between 0° and 60° at a surface temperature of 105 K. The adsorption probability was found to increase with coverage up to near monolayer saturation at all incident translational energies and incident angles. The coverage dependence of the adsorption probability predicted by a modified Kisliuk model with enhanced trapping into the second layer exhibits good quantitative agreement with the experimental values. The angular dependence of the adsorption probability decreases with increasing coverage, suggesting that the effective corrugation of the gas–surface interaction potential increases with the adsorbate coverage. The initial adsorption probability into the second layer onto the covered surface decreases from 0.95 to 0.75 with increasing energy over the energy range studied, and exhibits total energy scaling. A comparison with second-layer trapping data of simpler molecules onto covered Pt(111) indicates that the structural complexity of adsorbed neopentane molecules facilitates collisional energy transfer during adsorption.     

FTIR Emission Spectra, Molecular Constants, and Potential Curve of Ground State GeO

Extensive new high-temperature, high-resolution FTIR emission spectroscopy measurements for the five common isotopomers of GeO are combined with previous diode laser and microwave measurements in combined isotopomer analyses. New Dunham expansion parameters and an accurate analytical potential energy function are determined for the ground X1Sigma+ state. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.     

Toward benchmarking theoretical computations of elementary rate constants on catalytic surfaces: formate decomposition on Au and Cu

With the emergence of methods for computing rate constants for elementary reaction steps of catalytic reactions, benchmarking their accuracy becomes important. The unimolecular dehydrogenation of adsorbed formate on metal surfaces serves as a prototype for comparing experiment and theory. Previously measured pre-exponential factors for CO₂ formation from formate on metal surfaces, including Cu(110), are substantially higher than expected from the often used value of k_BT/h, or ∼6 × 10¹² s⁻¹, suggesting that the entropy of the transition state is higher than that of the adsorbed formate. Herein, the rate constant parameters for formate decomposition on Au(110) and Cu(110) are addressed quantitatively by both experiment and theory and compared. A pre-exponential factor of 2.3 × 10¹⁴ s⁻¹ was obtained experimentally on Au(110). DFT calculations revealed the most stable configuration of formate on both surfaces to be bidentate and the transition states to be less rigidly bound to the surface compared to the reactant state, resulting in a higher entropy of activation and a pre-exponential factor exceeding k_BT/h. Though reasonable agreement is obtained between experiment and theory for the pre-exponential factors, the activation energies determined experimentally remain consistently higher than those computed by DFT using the GGA–PBE functional. This difference was largely erased when the metaGGA–SCAN functional was applied. This study provides insight into the underlying factors that result in the relatively high pre-exponential factors for unimolecular decomposition on metal surfaces generally, highlights the importance of mobility for the transition state, and offers vital information related to the direct use of DFT to predict rate constants for elementary reaction steps on metal surfaces.

The underlying factors that result in the high pre-exponential factors for formate decomposition on Au and Cu(110) surfaces and the origins of differences between experiment and theory that may arise are reported.     

Modulated beam relaxation spectrometry: Its application to the study of heterogeneous kinetics

The results obtained to date using modulated beam relaxation spectrometry (MBRS) to study heterogeneous kinetics are reviewed. The method of MBRS is described with particular emphasis on judicious use of appropriate experimental variables to infer the kinetics and mechanism of surface reactions. Recent calculations are presented for simulated MBRS studies of nonlinear reaction sequences, including coverage dependent adsorption-desorption phenomena and second order reactions. Linearization methods are discussed which enable the study of more complex reactions. Finally, the general applicability of MBRS to heterogeneous kinetics is discussed.     

The relative acidities of gas phase acids for displacement of surface intermediates

The recent work of Barteau and Madix [Surface Sci. 120 (1982) 262] indicated that the stability of surface intermediates with respect to displacements by other species is related to the gas phase acidity difference of the molecules. To further test the generality of this hypothesis, experiments similar to those of Barteau et al. conducted on Ag(110) were performed on Cu(110). The results of those experiments are presented here.     

The autocatalytic decomposition of acetic acid on Ni(110)

The flash decomposition of CH₃COOH was studied on a clean nickel (110) surface following adsorption at 30° C in order to access the applicability of chemical reaction rate theory to a homologous series of reactants on a well-defined surface. As was observed for formic acid, acetic acid adsorbed at 30° C to yield gaseous H₂O and to form islands of adsorbed anhydride intermediates; the decomposition proceeded by a two-dimensional auto-catalytic mechanism to form H₂, CO₂, Co and surface carbon. The decomposition of the anhydride was rate determining for the formation of CO₂ and H₂. The rate of decomposition was well described by the equation governing the formic acid decomposition on the same surface. The activation energy for this first order decomposition was determined to be 28.2 $\text{kcal}\text{gmol}$ and the pre-exponential factor, v, was found to be 6.4 × 10¹⁴ s^?1 with a fraction of initiation sites of 0.004. These values were nearly the same as those observed for the decomposition of HCOOH, suggesting identical intramolecular mechanisms for the unimolecular decomposition of the adsorbed intermediates. The relative values of v for the decomposition of HCOOH, DCOOH and CH₃COOH indicated that the motion of the H, D or CH₃ group was involved in the rate-limiting step.     

The adsorption of CO,H2, H2, CO2 and H2O on carburized and graphitized Ni(110)

A study of the adsorption/desorption behavior of CO, H₂O, CO₂ and H₂ on Ni(110)(4 × 5)-C and Ni(110)-graphite was made in order to assess the importance of desorption as a rate-limiting step for the decomposition of formic acid and to identify available reaction channels for the decomposition. The carbide surface adsorbed CO and H₂O in amounts comparable to the clean surface, whereas this surface, unlike clean Ni(110), did not appreciably adsorb H₂. The binding energy of CO on the carbide was coverage sensitive, decreasing from 21 to 12 $\text{kcal}\text{mol}$ as the CO coverage approached 1.1 × 10¹⁵ molecules cm^?2 at 200K. The initial sticking probability and maximum coverage of CO on the carbide surface were close to that observed for clean Ni(110). The amount of H₂, CO, CO₂ and H₂O adsorbed on the graphitized surface was insignificant relative to the clean surface. The kinetics of adsorption/desorption of the states observed are discussed.     

Core hole screening and lifetimes in adsorbates on metallic surfaces

The C 1s photoemission lineshape and width has been studied for methoxy (CH₃O), formate (HCO₂) and CO on Cu(100). We find the Doniach-Sunjic asymmetry of the lineshape to be different for the three adsorbates and correlate these differences with the adsorption geometry. The observed shake up satellites exhibit a greatly increased width compared to the main lines, which is attributed to the reduced lifetime of the excited state of the C 1s core hole.