Catalytic CO oxidation is a seemingly simple reaction between CO and O2 molecules, one of the reactions in automotive catalytic converters, and the fruit-fly reaction in model catalysis. Surprisingly, the phase responsible for the catalytic activity is still under debate, despite decades of investigations. We have performed a simple but yet conclusive study of single crystal Rh and Pd model catalysts, resolving this controversy. For Rh, the oxygen-covered metallic surface is more active than the oxide, while for Pd, thin oxide films are at least as active as the metallic surface, but a thicker oxide is less active. Apart from resolving a long-standing debate, our results pinpoint important design principles for oxidation catalysts as to prevent catalytic extinction at high oxygen exposures.

CO reduction reactions, which provide one route to limit the emission of this greenhouse gas, are commonly performed over Cu-based catalysts. Here, we use ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy together with density functional theory to obtain an atomistic understanding of the dissociative adsorption of CO on Cu(100). We find that the process is dominated by the presence of steps, which promote both a lowering of the dissociation barrier and an efficient separation between adsorbed O and CO, reducing the probability for recombination. The identification of steps as sites for efficient CO dissociation provides an understanding that can be used in the design of future CO reduction catalysts.

HIPPIE is a soft X-ray beamline on the 3 GeV electron storage ring of the MAX IV Laboratory, equipped with a novel ambient-pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (APXPS) instrument. The endstation is dedicated to performing in situ and operando X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy experiments in the presence of a controlled gaseous atmosphere at pressures up to 30 mbar [1 mbar = 100 Pa] as well as under ultra-high-vacuum conditions. The photon energy range is 250 to 2200 eV in planar polarization and with photon fluxes >1012 photons s−1 (500 mA ring current) at a resolving power of greater than 10000 and up to a maximum of 32000. The endstation currently provides two sample environments: a catalysis cell and an electrochemical/liquid cell. The former allows APXPS measurements of solid samples in the presence of a gaseous atmosphere (with a mixture of up to eight gases and a vapour of a liquid) and simultaneous analysis of the inlet/outlet gas composition by online mass spectrometry. The latter is a more versatile setup primarily designed for APXPS at the solid–liquid (dip-and-pull setup) or liquid–gas (liquid microjet) interfaces under full electrochemical control, and it can also be used as an open port for ad hoc-designed non-standard APXPS experiments with different sample environments. The catalysis cell can be further equipped with an IR reflection–absorption spectrometer, allowing for simultaneous APXPS and IR spectroscopy of the samples. The endstation is set up to easily accommodate further sample environments.

Understanding nanoparticle catalysis requires novel approaches in which adjoining crystal orientations can be studied under the same reactive conditions. Here we use a curved palladium crystal and near-ambient pressure X-ray photoemission spectroscopy to characterize chemical species during the catalytic oxidation of CO in a whole set of surfaces vicinal to the (111) direction simultaneously. By stabilizing the reaction at fixed temperatures around the ignition point we observe a strong variation of the catalytic activity across the curved surface. Such spatial modulation of the reaction stage is straightforwardly mapped through the photoemission signal from active oxygen species and poisoning CO, which are shown to coexist in a transient regime that depends on the vicinal angle. Line-shape analysis and direct comparison with ultra-high vacuum experiments help identifying and quantifying all such surface species, allowing us to reveal the presence of surface oxides during reaction ignition and cooling-off.

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