Curved crystal surfaces
enable the systematic and accurate comparison
of physical and chemical processes for a full set of vicinal crystal
planes, which are probed in the very same environment. Here, we examine
the early stages of the CO chemisorption on vicinal Rh(111) surfaces
using a curved Rh crystal that exposes a smoothly variable density
of {100} (A-type) and {111} (B-type) steps. We readily identify and
quantify step and terrace species by resolving their respective core-level
lines using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy at different locations
on the curved surface. Uptake experiments show similar sticking probabilities
at all surface planes, subtle asymmetries between A- and B-type steps,
and significantly lower saturation coverage at densely stepped surfaces
as compared to the (111) plane. The analysis of the C 1s intensity
variation across the curved sample allows us to discuss the adsorption
geometry around the step edge.
The catalytic oxidation of CO on transition metals, such as Pt, is commonly viewed as asharp transition from the CO-inhibited surface to the active metal, covered with O. However,w ef ind that minor amounts of Oa re present in the CO-poisoned layer that explain why,surprisingly,COdesorbs at stepped and flat Pt crystal planes at once,r egardless of the reaction conditions.Using near-ambient pressure X-ray photoemission and ac urved Pt(111) crystal we probe the chemical composition at surfaces with variable step density during the CO oxidation reaction. Analysis of Cand Ocore levels across the curved crystal reveals that, right before light-off,subsurface Ob uilds up within (111) terraces.T his is key to trigger the simultaneous ignition of the catalytic reaction at different Pt surfaces:aCO-Pt-O complex is formed that equals the CO chemisorption energy at terraces and steps,l eading to the abrupt desorption of poisoning CO from all crystal facets at the same temperature.
The state of the surface near-region during CO hydrogenation
of
Ni(111) and Ni(211) single crystal surfaces was investigated using
various gas mixtures between 150 and 500 mbar, 200 and 325 °C,
by operando X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We report how higher
temperatures and hydrogen content correlate with a movement of CO
away from the on-top configurations and toward multicoordinated sites
of the nickel surface and how a nickel carbide is formed in the surface
near region, particularly at high partial pressures of CO and lower
temperatures. The presence of the carbide affects the CO bonding and
was observed to be reduced during hydrogen-rich conditions and temperatures
above 250 °C.
Steps
at metal surfaces may influence energetics and kinetics of
catalytic reactions in unexpected ways. Here, we report a significant
reduction of the CO saturation coverage in Pd vicinal surfaces, which
in turn is relevant for the light-off of the CO oxidation reaction.
The study is based on a systematic investigation of CO adsorption
on vicinal Pd(111) surfaces making use of a curved Pd crystal. A combined
X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and DFT analysis allows us to demonstrate
that an entire row of atomic sites under Pd steps remains free of
CO upon saturation at 300 K, leading to a step-density-dependent reduction
of CO coverage that correlates with the observed decrease of the light-off
temperature during CO oxidation in vicinal Pd surfaces.
Rotaxanes, formed by an axis through the cavity of a macrocycle, are promising systems for the construction of molecular machines. A very limited number of experimental techniques are available for mechanistic studies since only mechanical bonds are formed, being NMR one of the most widely used. The major inconvenience derived from NMR use is the time-scale for threading/dethreading processes lasting a few minutes in the case of faster processes. In the present manuscript, we report the application of a new kinetic methodology based on a displacement assay for cyclodextrin-based pseudorotaxane formation. By coupling a very fast (microseconds time-scale) binding/dissociation of nitrophenol to α-CD with a dicationic axle threading/dethreading process, we have been able to study kinetic processes taking place in the millisecond time-scale.
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