Understanding
the interaction of CO2 with perovskite
metal oxide surfaces is crucial for the design of various perovskite
(electro)chemical functionalities, such as solid oxide fuel cells,
catalytic oxidation reactions, and gas sensing. In this study, we
experimentally investigated the reactivity of CO2 with
a series of cobalt-based perovskites (i.e., LaCoO3, La0.4Sr0.6CoO3, SrCoO2.5, and
Pr0.5Ba0.5CoO3−δ) by
a combined ambient-pressure XPS (AP-XPS) and diffuse reflectance infrared
Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) approach. Isobaric measurements
by AP-XPS on epitaxial pulsed laser deposition-grown (100)-oriented
thin films under 1 mTorr CO2 showed the formation and uptake
of adsorbed adventitious-like C–C/C–H, −CO species,
monodentate carbonate, and bidentate (bi)carbonates. DRIFTS measurements
on powder samples under CO2 atmosphere revealed the presence
of multiple configurations of carbonate in the asymmetric O–C–O
stretching region with peak splittings of ∼100 and ∼300
cm–1 correlated to the monodentate- and bidentate-bound
carbonate adsorbates, respectively. The synergy between chemical state
identification by AP-XPS and vibrational state detection by DRIFTS
allows both the carbonaceous species type and the configuration to
be identified. We further demonstrate that the surface chemistry of
the A-site cation strongly influences CO2 reactivity; the La, Sr, and Ba cations in the LaCoO3,
La0.4Sr0.6CoO3, SrCoO2.5, and Pr0.5Ba0.5CoO3 thin films
showed significant carbon adsorbate speciation. Additionally, we link
the La0.4Sr0.6CoO3 surface chemistry
to its surface reactivity toward formation of bidentate (bi)carbonate
species via exchange of lattice oxygen with carbonate oxygen. In conclusion,
we show that the perovskite electronic structure ultimately dictates
the driving force for formation of oxidized oxo-carbonaceous species
(CO3) versus reduced species (C–C/C–H). A
higher O 2p-band center relative to the Fermi level was correlated
with a higher degree of (bi)carbonate formation relative to the other
carbonaceous species observed (C–C/C–H and −CO)
due to a more facile charge transfer from oxygen states at the Fermi
level to free CO2 gas.