Under-cover stabilization and reactivity of a dense carbon monoxide layer on Pt(111)

Effect of temperature on CO oxidation over Pt(111) in two-dimensional confinement

Confined catalysis between a two-dimensional (2D) cover and metal surfaces has provided a unique environment with enhanced activity compared to uncovered metal surfaces. Within this 2D confinement, weakened adsorption and lowered activation energies were observed using surface science experiments and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Computationally, the role of electronic and mechanical factors responsible for the improved activity was deduced only from static DFT calculations. This demands a detailed investigation on the dynamics of reactions under 2D confinement, including temperature effects. In this work, we study CO oxidation on a 2D graphene covered Pt(111) surface at 90 and 593 K using DFT-based ab initio molecular dynamics simulations starting from the transition state configuration. We show that CO oxidation in the presence of a graphene cover is substantially enhanced (2.3 times) at 90 K. Our findings suggest that 2D confined spaces can be used to enhance the activity of chemical reactions, especially at low temperatures.

Visualizing the Anomalous Catalysis in Two-Dimensional Confined Space

Confined nanospaces provide a new platform to promote catalytic reactions. However, the mechanism of catalytic enhancement in the nanospace still requires insightful exploration due to the lack of direct visualization. Here, we report operando investigations on the etching and growth of graphene in a two-dimensional (2D) confined space between graphene and a Cu substrate. We observed that the graphene layer between the Cu and top graphene layer was surprisingly very active in etching (more than 10 times faster than the etching of the top graphene layer). More strikingly, at a relatively low temperature (∼530 °C), the etched carbon radicals dissociated from the bottom layer, in turn feeding the growth of the top graphene layer with a very high efficiency. Our findings reveal the in situ dynamics of the anomalous confined catalytic processes in 2D confined spaces and thus pave the way for the design of high-efficiency catalysts.

Synergistic adsorptions of Na2CO3 and Na2SiO3 on calcium minerals revealed by spectroscopic and ab initio molecular dynamics studies

FTIR, XPS, and ab initio molecular dynamics studies demonstrated that sodium silicate (Na₂SiO₃) adsorbs on fluorite with a higher affinity when they are treated beforehand by sodium carbonate (Na₂CO₃) due to proton exchange(s).

The synergistic effects between sodium silicate (Na₂SiO₃) and sodium carbonate (Na₂CO₃) adsorbed on mineral surfaces are not yet understood, making it impossible to finely tune their respective amounts in various industrial processes. In order to unravel this phenomenon, diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies were combined with ab initio molecular dynamics to investigate the adsorption of Na₂SiO₃ onto bare and carbonated fluorite (CaF₂), an archetypal calcium mineral. Both experimental and theoretical results proved that Na₂CO₃ adsorbs onto CaF₂ with a high affinity and forms a layer of Na₂CO₃ on the surface. Besides, at low Na₂SiO₃ concentration, silica mainly physisorbs in a monomeric protonated form, Si(OH)₄, while at larger concentration, significant amounts of polymerised and deprotonated forms are identified. Prior surface carbonation induces an acid–base reaction on the surface, which results in the formation of the basic forms of the monomers and the dimers, i.e. SiO(OH)₃^– and Si₂O₃(OH)₄^2–, even at low coverage. Their adsorption is highly favoured compared to the acid forms, which explains the synergistic effects observed when Na₂SiO₃ is used after Na₂CO₃. The formation of the basic form on the bare surface is observed only by increasing the surface coverage to 100%. Hence, when Na₂CO₃ is used during a separation process, lower Na₂SiO₃ concentrations are needed to obtain the same effect as with lone Na₂SiO₃ in the separation process.