EXAFS catalysts

Figure 8.40 The k ySk) extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) signal, Fourier transformed and then retransformed after application of the filter window indicated, in (a) osmium metal and (b) a 1% osmium catalyst supported on silica. (Reproduced, with permission, Ifom Winnick, FI. and Doniach, S. (Eds), Synchrotron Radiation Research, p. 413, Plenum, New York, 1980)...

Oxide-supported metals constitute one of the most important classes of heterogeneous catalysts, and for this reason they have been investigated by many techniques adsorption isotherms, IR of chemisorbed molecules, electron microscopy, EXAFS, etc. Flowever, the fact that they have been studied by so many methods proves that no one technique is totally satisfactory. 

A MgO-supported W—Pt catalyst has been prepared from IWsPttCOIotNCPh) (i -C5H5)2l (Fig. 70), reduced under a Hs stream at 400 C, and characterized by IR, EXAFS, TEM and chemisorption of Hs, CO, and O2. Activity in toluene hydrogenation at 1 atm and 60 C was more than an order of magnitude less for the bimetallic cluster-derived catalyst, than for a catalyst prepared from the two monometallic precursors. 

Rc-Pt [Re2Pl(CO)i2] 197 K-AI2O3 Catalyst characterization (IR. XPS. TPR, chemisorption) Catalyst characterization (EXAFS. chemisorption) and methylcyclohe.xane dehydrogenation 203 204... 

MgO-supported model Mo—Pd catalysts have been prepared from the bimetallic cluster [Mo2Pd2 /z3-CO)2(/r-CO)4(PPh3)2() -C2H )2 (Fig. 70) and monometallic precursors. Each supported sample was treated in H2 at various temperatures to form metallic palladium, and characterized by chemisorption of H2, CO, and O2, transmission electron microscopy, TPD of adsorbed CO, and EXAFS. The data showed that the presence of molybdenum in the bimetallic precursor helped to maintain the palladium in a highly dispersed form. In contrast, the sample prepared from the monometallie precursors was characterized by larger palladium particles and by weaker Mo—Pd interactions. ... 

The goal of this work was to prepare and characterize PtRu/MgO catalysts from cluster A which contained Pt-Ru bonds and compare with that prepared from a mixed solution of Pt(acac)2 and Ru(acac)3. The characterization methods included IR and EXAFS spectroscopy. Ethylene hydrogenation was used to test the catalytic activity of both PtRu/MgO catalysts. 

Figure 4.12. Rh-EXAFS Fourier transforms of Rh/Al203 catalysts after reduction at 200 °C and 400 °C, showing a dominant contribution from Rh nearest-neighbors at 0.27 nm and contributions from oxygen neighbors in Rh203...

The second approach is to study real catalysts with in situ techniques such as infrared and Mossbauer spectroscopy, EXAFS and XRD, under reaction conditions, or, as is more often done, under a controlled environment after quenching of the reaction. The in situ techniques, however, are not sufficiently surface specific to yield the desired atom-by-atom characterization of the surface. At best they determine the composition of the particles. 

Owing largely to research over the last twenty years, the sulfided C0-M0/AI2O3 system is one of the best-characterized industrial catalysts [H. Topsoe, B.S. Clausen and F.E. Massoth, Hydrotreating Catalysis (1996), Springer-Verlag, Berlin]. A combination of methods, such as Mbssbauer spectroscopy, EXAFS, XPS, and infrared spectroscopy, has led to a picture in which the active site of such a catalyst is known in almost atomic detail. 

In ecent years the utility of extended X-ray absorption fine structure UXAFS) as a probe for the study of catalysts has been clearly demonstrated (1-17). Measurements of EXAFS are particularly valuable for very highly dispersed catalysts. Supported metal systems, in which small metal clusters or crystallites are commonly dispersed on a refractory oxide such as alumina or silica, are good examples of such catalysts. The ratio of surface atoms to total atoms in the metal clusters is generally high and may even approach unity in some cases. 

We have found EXAFS to be a very effective method for obtaining structural information on bimetallic cluster catalysts (8,12-15,17) These types of catalysts, and bimetallic catalysts in general, have been the subject of extensive research in the EXXON laboratories since the 1960 s (18-25). In this paper we present a brief review of the results of some ofour EXAFS investigations on bimetallic cluster catalysts. 

When the ruthenium EXAFS for the ruthenium-copper catalyst is compared with the EXAFS for a ruthenium reference catalyst containing no copper, it is found that they are not very different. This indicates that the environment about a ruthenium atom in the bimetallic catalyst is on the average not very different from that in the reference catalyst. This result is consistent with the view that a ruthenium-copper cluster consists of a central core of ruthenium atoms with the copper atoms present at the surface. 

The copper EXAFS of the ruthenium-copper clusters might be expected to differ substantially from the copper EXAFS of a copper on silica catalyst, since the copper atoms have very different environments. This expectation is indeed borne out by experiment, as shown in Figure 2 by the plots of the function K x(K) vs. K at 100 K for the extended fine structure beyond the copper K edge for the ruthenium-copper catalyst and a copper on silica reference catalyst ( ). The difference is also evident from the Fourier transforms and first coordination shell inverse transforms in the middle and right-hand sections of Figure 2. The inverse transforms were taken over the range of distances 1.7 to 3.1A to isolate the contribution to EXAFS arising from the first coordination shell of metal atoms about a copper absorber atom. This shell consists of copper atoms alone in the copper catalyst and of both copper and ruthenium atoms in the ruthenium-copper catalyst. 

Figure 2. Normalized EXAFS data (copper K absorption edge) at 100°K, with associated Fourier transforms and inverse transforms, for silica supported copper and ruthenium-copper catalysts. Reproduced with permission from Ref. 8. Copyright 1980, American Institute of Physics.

Figure 4. Contributions of nearest neighbor copper and osmium backscattering atoms (circles in fields B and C, respectively) to the EXAFS (solid line) associated with the osmium Ltjj absorption edge of a silica supported osmium-copper catalyst, me circles in field A represent the combined contributions resulting from the data analysis. Reproduced with permission from Ref. 12. Copyright 1981, American Institute of Physics.

Since ruthenium and rhodium are neighboring elements in the periodic table, a closer comparison of the properties of ruthenium-copper and rhodium-copper clusters is of interest (17). When we compare EXAFS results on rhodium-copper and ruthenium-copper catalysts in which the Cu/Rh and Cu/Ru atomic ratios are both equal to one, we find some differences which can be related to the differences in miscibility of copper with ruthenium and rhodium. The extent of concentration of copper at the surface appears to be lower for the rhodium-copper clusters than for the ruthenium-copper clusters, as evidenced by the fact that rhodium exhibits a greater tendency than ruthenium to be coordinated to copper atoms in such clusters. The rhodium-copper clusters presumably contain some of the copper atoms in the interior of the clusters. 

Extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) studies have been very useful for obtaining structural information on bimetallic cluster catalysts. The application to bimetallic systems is a particularly good one for illustrating the various factors which have an influence on EXAFS. Moreover, the applicability of EXAFS to this area has been very timely, in view of the enormous interest in bimetallic systems in both catalytic science and technology. 

The results of the EXAFS studies on supported bimetallic catalysts have provided excellent confirmation of earlier conclusions (21-24) regarding the existence of bimetallic clusters in these catalysts. Moreover, major structural features of bimetallic clusters deduced from chemisorption and catalytic data (21-24), or anticipated from considerations of the miscibility or surface energies of the components (13-15), received additional support from the EXAFS data. From another point of view, it can also be said that the bimetallic catalyst systems provided a critical test of the EXAFS method for investigations of catalyst structure (17). The application of EXAFS in conjunction with studies employing ( mical probes and other types of physical probes was an important feature of the work (25). 

Investigations utilizing EXAFS have the very important feature of yielding information in an environment of the kind actually encountered in catalysis. We have recently demonstrated the feasibility of making measurements while a catalytic reaction is actually occurring. One can anticipate that measurements of this type will receive Increased emphasis in the future. For studies of the structures of highly dispersed metal catalysts, EXAFS may well be the most generally applicable physical probe currently available. 

X-ray absorption spectroscopy combining x-ray absorption near edge fine structure (XANES) and extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) was used to extensively characterize Pt on Cabosll catalysts. XANES Is the result of electron transitions to bound states of the absorbing atom and thereby maps the symmetry - selected empty manifold of electron states. It Is sensitive to the electronic configuration of the absorbing atom. When the photoelectron has sufficient kinetic energy to be ejected from the atom It can be backscattered by neighboring atoms. The quantum Interference of the Initial... 

In the following, structural data are obtained for Ft atoms and their near neighbors on active catalysts under controlled conditions. XANES Is used to Indicate the direction and amount of d-electron flow between the Ft catalyst and Its ligands, EXAFS to measure near neighbor structural parameters. We find EXAFS/XANES to be a sensitive and subtle Indicator of small changes In the environment of catalytic atoms. 

In practice once a desirable catalyst condition was achieved x-ray measurements often were taken at temperature and after quenching to 90 K In an attempt to minimize thermal smearing of the EXAFS data. 

In a recent paper we used the temperature sequence of EXAFS measurements of the reduced catalyst In H2 to determine the temperature dependence of the disorder. (7 ) Comparable data was obtained for Ft metal over the same temperature range. The analysis proceeded by fitting the 1st coordination shell catalyst data to a 2-shell model In which the 1st shell was assumed to be that part of the Ft cluster... 

Figure 2. Fhase adjusted Fourier transforms of Ft metal, 1% Ft/ Cabosil catalyst in H2 and 0.5% Ft/Cabosil catalyst in H2, all at 90 K. All are plotted to the same scale to emphasize the diminished magnitude because of the smaller average coordination numbers in the catalysts. The INSET shows the Ft-0 peak area retransformed with the appropriate Ft-0 phase shift. The artifact at low R is due to the EXAFS extraction procedure.

---