The use of the coupling agent, 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES), in the silanization reaction with silanol-terminated silicon is an important surface modification reaction. Of particular importance is that the terminal amine functionalities of APTES are sufficiently exposed to the gas or liquid phase for further modifications, such as amide coupling reactions. Here, metastable induced electron spectroscopy (MIES) and UV photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) were used to study the composition of the outermost layer of a silanol-terminated Si surface after silanization with APTES. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to validate the attachment of APTES to the surface. Density of States (DOS) calculations were employed for interpreting the MIE spectra. Findings showed that amine functionalities covered only a small fraction of the APTES-modified Si surface.

Synchrotron XPS was used to investigate a series of chemically-synthesised, atomically-precise gold clusters Au(n)(PPh(3))(y) (n = 8, 9, 11 and 101, with y depending on cluster size) immobilized on titania nanoparticles. The gold clusters were washed with toluene at 100 °C or calcined at 200 °C to remove the organic ligand. From the position of the Au 4f(7/2) peak it is concluded that cluster size is not altered through the deposition. From the analysis of the phosphorous spectra, it can be concluded that the applied heat treatment removes the organic ligands. Washing and calcination leads to partial oxidation and partial agglomeration of the clusters. Oxidation of the clusters is most likely due to the interaction of the cluster core with the oxygen of the titania surface after removal of ligands. The position of the Au 4f(7/2) peak indicates that the size of the agglomerated clusters is still smaller than that of Au(101).

Synchrotron XPS was used to investigate a series of chemically synthesised, atomically precise gold clusters Au(n)(PPh3)y (n = 8, 9 and 101, y depending on the cluster size) immobilized on anatase (titania) nanoparticles. Effects of post-deposition treatments were investigated by comparison of untreated samples with analogues that have been heat treated at 200 °C in O2, or in O2 followed by H2 atmosphere. XPS data shows that the phosphine ligands are oxidised upon heat treatment in O2. From the position of the Au 4f(7/2) peak it can be concluded that the clusters partially agglomerate immediately upon deposition. Heating in oxygen, and subsequently in hydrogen, leads to further agglomeration of the gold clusters. It is found that the pre-treatment plays a crucial role in the removal of ligands and agglomeration of the clusters.

The production of acrylic acid (CH2CHCO2H) via homogeneous nickel-mediated coupling of ethylene (CH2CH2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) is industrially unattractive at present due to its stoichiometric, rather than catalytic, reaction profile. We utilize density functional theory (DFT) to describe the potential energy surface for both the nickel-mediated coupling reaction and an intramolecular deactivation reaction reported to hinder the desired catalytic activity. The calculated route for the catalytic production of acrylic acid can be divided into three main parts, none of which contain significantly large barriers that would be expected to prohibit the overall catalytic process. Investigation of the catalyst deactivation reaction reveals that the proposed product lies +102.6 kJ mol−1 above the reactants, thereby ruling out this type of pathway as the cause of the noncatalytic activity. Instead, it is far more conceivable that the overall reaction thermodynamics are responsible for the lack of catalytic activity observed, with the solvation -corrected Gibbs free energy of the coupling reaction in question (i.e., CH2CH2 + CO2 → CH2CHCO2H) calculated to be an unfavorable +42.7 kJ mol−1.