Catalysis and surface science: What do we learn from studies of oxide-supported cluster model systems?

Microfabrication Enables Quantification of Interfacial Activity in Thermal Catalysis

A myriad of heterogeneous catalysts comprises multiple phases that need to be precisely structured to exert their maximal contribution to performance through electronic and structural interactions at their peripheries. In view of the nanometric, tridimensional, and anisotropic nature of these materials, a quantification of the interface and the impact of catalytic sites located there on the global performance is a highly challenging task. Consequently, the true origin of catalysis often remains subject of debate even for widely studied materials. Herein, an integrated strategy based on microfabricated catalysts and a custom-designed reactor is introduced for determining interfacial contributions upon catalytic activity assessment under process-relevant conditions, which can be easily implemented in the common catalysis research infrastructure and will accelerate the rational design of multicomponent heterogeneous catalysts for diverse applications. The method is validated by studying the high-pressure continuous-flow hydrogenation of CO and CO₂ over Cu-ZnO catalysts, revealing linear correlations between the methanol formation rate and the interface between the metal and the oxide. Characterization of fresh and used materials points to the model catalyst preparation as the current challenge of the methodology that can be addressed through further development of nanotechnological tools.

Operando Surface Characterization on Catalytic and Energy Materials from Single Crystals to Nanoparticles

Modern surface science faces two major challenges, a materials gap and a pressure gap. While studies on single crystal surface in ultrahigh vacuum have uncovered the atomic and electronic structures of the surface, the materials and environmental conditions of commercial catalysis are much more complicated, both in the structure of the materials and in the accessible pressure range of analysis instruments. Model systems and operando surface techniques have been developed to bridge these gaps. In this Review, we highlight the current trends in the development of the surface characterization techniques and methodologies in more realistic environments, with emphasis on recent research efforts at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. We show principles and applications of the microscopic and spectroscopic surface techniques at ambient pressure that were used for the characterization of atomic structure, electronic structure, charge transport, and the mechanical properties of catalytic and energy materials. Ambient pressure scanning tunneling microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy allow us to observe the surface restructuring that occurs during oxidation, reduction, and catalytic processes. In addition, we introduce the ambient pressure atomic force microscopy that revealed the morphological, mechanical, and charge transport properties that occur during the catalytic and energy conversion processes. Hot electron detection enables the monitoring of catalytic reactions and electronic excitations on the surface. Overall, the information on the nature of catalytic reactions obtained with operando spectroscopic and microscopic techniques may bring breakthroughs in some of the global energy and environmental problems the world is facing.

Roughening of Copper (100) at Elevated CO Pressure: Cu Adatom and Cluster Formation Enable CO Dissociation

Carbon monoxide participates in many copper-catalyzed reactions, which makes CO-induced structural changes of Cu catalysts key for important industrial processes. We have studied the interaction of carbon monoxide with the Cu(100) single crystal termination at 120, 200, and 300 K by means of low-energy electron diffraction (LEED), temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), polarization-modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRAS), and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The absorption band of CO (2082-2112 cm^-1) at elevated gas pressure (up to 5 mbar) and at 200/300 K was found at a higher wavenumber than the characteristic band of the c(2 × 2)CO structure and was consistent with CO adsorbed on low-coordinated Cu atoms. The combined PM-IRAS/DFT analysis revealed that exposure to CO induced surface roughening through the formation of Cu adatoms and clusters on the (100) terraces. The roughened surface seemed surprisingly active for CO dissociation, which indicates its unique catalytic properties.

Vibrational Mode Assignment of α-Pinene by Isotope Editing: One Down, Seventy-One To Go

This study aims to reliably assign the vibrational sum frequency generation (SFG) spectrum of α-pinene at the vapor/solid interface using a method involving deuteration of various methyl groups. The synthesis of five deuterated isotopologues of α-pinene is presented to determine the impact that removing contributions from methyl group C-H oscillators has on its SFG response. 0.6 cm(-1) resolution SFG spectra of these isotopologues show varying degrees of differences in the C-H stretching region when compared to the SFG response of unlabeled α-pinene. The largest spectral changes were observed for the isotopologue containing a fully deuterated vinyl methyl group. Noticeable losses in signal intensities allow us to reliably assign the 2860 cm(-1) peak to the vinyl methyl symmetric stretch. Furthermore, upon removing the vinyl methyl group entirely by synthesizing apopinene, the steric influence of the unlabeled C9H14 fragment on the SFG response of α-pinene SFG can be readily observed. The work presented here brings us one step closer to understanding the vibrational spectroscopy of α-pinene.

Oxide Surface Science

Most metals are oxidized under ambient conditions, and metal oxides show interesting and technologically promising properties. This has motivated much recent research on oxide surfaces. The combination of scanning tunneling microscopy with first-principles density functional theory–based computational techniques provides an atomic-scale view of the properties of metal-oxide materials. Surface polarity is a key concept for predicting the stability of oxide surfaces and is discussed using ZnO as an example. This review also highlights the role of surface defects for surface reactivity, and their interplay with defects in the bulk, for the case of TiO2. Ultrathin metal-oxide films, grown either through reactive evaporation on metal single crystals or through oxidation of metal alloys (such as Al2O3/NiAl), have gained popularity as supports for planar model catalysts. The surface oxides that form upon oxidation on Pt-group metals (e.g., Ru, Rh, Pd, and Pt) are considered as model systems for CO oxidation.

Quantum well states in two-dimensional gold clusters on MgO thin films

The electronic structure of ultrasmall Au clusters on thin MgO/Ag(001) films has been analyzed by scanning tunneling spectroscopy and density functional theory. The clusters exhibit two-dimensional quantum well states, whose shapes resemble the eigenstates of a 2D electron gas confined in a parabolic potential. From the symmetry of the highest occupied (HOMO) and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of a particular cluster, its electron filling and charge state is determined. In accordance with a Bader charge analysis, aggregates containing up to 20 atoms accumulate one to four extra electrons due to a charge transfer from the MgO/Ag interface. The HOMO-LUMO gap is found to close for clusters containing between 70 and 100 atoms.