Metal surfaces, computer simulation

The dependences of pH and C-potential on the adsorbed amount of M(H20)2+ at the total metal ion concentrations of 3 x10-3 mol dm-3 are shown in Figures 7 and 8, respectively. The amount adsorbed for each M2+ increases with the pH, and the inflection points are shifted toward the lower pH region in the order of Co2+, Zn2+, Pb2+, Cu2+, which corresponds to the order of the hydrolysis constant of metal ions. To explain the M2+-adsorption/desorption, Hachiya et al. (16,17) modified the treatment of the computer simulation developed by Davis et al. (4). In this model, M2+ binds coordina-tively to amphoteric surface hydroxyl groups. The equilibrium constants are expressed as... 

An important aspect of the study of water under electrochemical conditions is that one is able to continuously modify the charge on the metal surface and thus apply a well-defined external electric field, which can have a dramatic effect on adsorption and on chemical reactions. Here we briefly discuss the effect of the external electric field on the properties of water at the solution/metal interface obtained from molecular dynamics computer simulations. A general discussion of the theoretical and experi-... 

The calculations of the stmcture of water between charged flat walls show that the density profile becomes asymmetric and that there is enhanced structuring. This enhanced structuring is intimately connected with the possibility of a continuous phase transition in quasi two-dimensional systems, a subject of recent intense interest. ° Most of the molecular dynamics computer simulations on the effects of an external field have been carried out in an attempt to clarify the field-induced restructuring of water molecules at the metal surface, for which recent experimental data have become available. ... 

The main goal of the molecular dynamics computer simulation of ionic solvation and adsorption on a metal surface has been to test the above model and to provide more quantitative information about the different factors that influence the structure of hydrated ions at the interface. Unfortunately, most of the experimental information about these issues has been obtained from indirect measurements such as capacity and current-potential plots, although in recent years in situ experimental techniques have begun to provide an accurate test of the above model. For a recent review of experimental techniques and the theory of ionic adsorption at the water/metal interface, see the excellent paper by Philpott. ... 

The structure of the adsorbed ion coordination shell is determined by the competition between the water-ion and the metal-ion interactions, and by the constraints imposed on the water by the metal surface. This structure can be characterized by water-ion radial distribution functions and water-ion orientational probability distribution functions. Much is known about this structure from X-ray and neutron scattering measurements performed in bulk solutions, and these are generally in agreement with computer simulations. The goal of molecular dynamics simulations of ions at the metal/water interface has been to examine to what degree the structure of the ion solvation shell is modified at the interface. 

The theoretical modeling of electron transfer reactions at the solution/metal interface is challenging because, in addition to the difficulties associated with the quantitative treatment of the water/metal surface and of the electric double layer discussed earlier, one now needs to consider the interactions of the electron with the metal surface and the solvated ions. Most theoretical treatments have focused on electron-metal coupling, while representing the solvent using the continuum dielectric media. In keeping with the scope of this review, we limit our discussion to subjects that have been adi essed in recent years using molecular dynamics computer simulations. 

For condensed phases of bulk metals, the binding energy can be divided into repulsions between nuclei (see above) and the interaction of the positively charged nuclei with an electron gas. Within this breakdown, the motion of the nuclei can be determined by pair-additive forces with the addition of volume-dependent terms arising from the pressure of the electron gas . While computer simulations based on these types of interactions have been carried out , volume-dependent interactions are difficult to define unambiguously for surfaces. 

The remainder of this chapter is devoted to describing the results of computer simulations which have used the ideas discussed above. The overall goal of these studies is to describe and understand phenomena which depend for the most part on bonding ( medium-range ) interactions. For example, simulations of the reaction of small molecules on metal surfaces are discussed in section 3.1, where bond formation occurs at thermal energies. The major drawback for using simulations to study these types of processes is that the... 

In a similar fashion, the introduction of angle-dependent electron densities into the EAM suggests that this formalism may be successfully extended to chemical reactions. This would allow the study, for example, of the reaction of a metal-ligand cluster with a metal surface. This would enhance the applicability of the EAM, and would increase the realm of processes which computer simulations can effectively model. 

The results obtained for the stochastic model show that surface reactions are well-suited for a description in terms of the master equations. Since this infinite set of equations cannot be solved analytically, numerical methods must be used for solving it. In previous Sections we have studied the catalytic oxidation of CO over a metal surface with the help of a similar stochastic model. The results are in good agreement with MC and CA simulations. In this Section we have introduced a much more complex system which takes into account the state of catalyst sites and the diffusion of H atoms. Due to this complicated model, MC and in some respect CA simulations cannot be used to study this system in detail because of the tremendous amount of required computer time. However, the stochastic ansatz permits to study very complex systems including the distribution of special surface sites and correlated initial conditions for the surface and the coverages of particles. This model can be easily extended to more realistic models by introducing more aspects of the reaction mechanism. Moreover, other systems can be represented by this ansatz. Therefore, this stochastic model represents an elegant alternative to the simulation of surface reaction systems via MC or CA simulations. 

The usefulness and applications of system stability surfaces will now be illustrated by computer-simulation of various metal-multiligand equilibrium systems. 

Computer simulations of metal/electrolyte interfaces are a great challenge. Explicit water molecules bring new degrees of freedom for atoms and electrons, and accurate and physically realistic simnlations require solvent dynamics. Taylor and Neurock reviewed recent work on metal/water interfaces focusing on water stracture and other interactions with electrode surfaces. ... 

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