CO Oxidation as a Prototypical Reaction for Heterogeneous Processes

Abstract

CO oxidation, although seemingly a simple chemical reaction, provides us with a panacea that reveals the richness and beauty of heterogeneous catalysis. The Fritz Haber Institute is a place where a multidisciplinary approach to study the course of such a heterogeneous reaction can be generated in house. Research at the institute is primarily curiosity driven, which is reflected in the five sections comprising this Review. We use an approach based on microscopic concepts to study the interaction of simple molecules with well-defined materials, such as clusters in the gas phase or solid surfaces. This approach often asks for the development of new methods, tools, and materials to prove them, and it is exactly this aspect, both, with respect to experiment and theory, that is a trade mark of our institute.

Strong metal–support interactions between palladium and iron oxide and their effect on CO oxidation

“…CO oxidation can serve as a model reaction for more complex heterogeneous reactions [17]. It has been studied extensively using Pd as catalyst.…”

“…The oxidation of CO is applied as test reaction to characterize samples in different states. Parts of this study have already been included in a previous publication [17]. …”

Strong Influence of Coadsorbate Interaction on CO Desorption Dynamics on Ru(0001) Probed by Ultrafast X-Ray Spectroscopy andAb InitioSimulations

“…S1, S2 and S5 for modeled surface structures) [16]. Optical laser pulses initiate surface reactions, which for CO=Ruð0001Þ lead to desorption [9,10,[26][27][28] and for 2O-CO=Ruð0001Þ include both CO desorption and a minor contribution from oxidation to CO 2 [29][30][31]. The temperature profile of the electron and phonon subsystems induced by ultrafast optical lasers can be described using the two-temperature model [16,32,33].…”

Probing adsorption on a nanoscale: field desorption microspectroscopy

“…3 Application examples 3.1 Weakly adsorbed CO species on Pt (111) The role of the weakly adsorbed CO species on Pt-catalyst surface, which are assumed to exist at elevated pressures, is often and controversially discussed in the literature (Freund et al 2011;Farias et al 2015). The experimental results are rather scarce due to the difficulties in detecting such layers in UHV.…”