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Break-up of stepped platinum catalyst surfaces by high CO coverage
Feng Tao1, Sefa Dag, Lin-Wang Wang
1Materials Science Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|February 13, 2010
Summary
Stepped platinum surfaces restructure into nanoclusters when exposed to carbon monoxide (CO), relieving adsorbate repulsion. This platinum restructuring reverses upon CO removal, impacting heterogeneous catalysis.
Area of Science:
- Surface Science
- Catalysis
- Materials Science
Background:
- Stepped single-crystal surfaces serve as models for real catalysts, featuring numerous low-coordination sites.
- Real catalysts comprise small metal particles with high surface area and abundant low-coordination sites.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the restructuring behavior of stepped platinum (Pt) surfaces under carbon monoxide (CO) exposure.
- To understand the implications of this restructuring on catalytic processes.
Main Methods:
- Utilized scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) under near-ambient pressure conditions.
- Employed density functional theory (DFT) calculations to model surface phenomena.
Main Results:
- Stepped Pt surfaces (557) and (332) orientations undergo significant reversible restructuring at CO pressures above 0.1 torr.
- At near 100% CO coverage, flat terraces transform into nanometer-sized clusters.
- Restructuring reverts to the original morphology upon CO removal.
- DFT calculations confirm that nanocluster formation increases low-coordination Pt sites, alleviating CO-CO repulsion.
Conclusions:
- The observed restructuring phenomenon provides a mechanism for accommodating high CO surface coverage on stepped Pt surfaces.
- This dynamic restructuring has significant implications for the mechanisms and efficiency of heterogeneous catalytic reactions involving CO.
- Understanding surface restructuring is crucial for designing advanced catalytic materials.
