Single crystals defining

Figure 6.20 Geometry of the slip plane and slip direction in a single crystal, defined with respect to a uniaxial applied stress.

How are fiindamental aspects of surface reactions studied The surface science approach uses a simplified system to model the more complicated real-world systems. At the heart of this simplified system is the use of well defined surfaces, typically in the fonn of oriented single crystals. A thorough description of these surfaces should include composition, electronic structure and geometric structure measurements, as well as an evaluation of reactivity towards different adsorbates. Furthemiore, the system should be constructed such that it can be made increasingly more complex to more closely mimic macroscopic systems. However, relating surface science results to the corresponding real-world problems often proves to be a stumbling block because of the sheer complexity of these real-world systems. 

The most direct test is to compare the BET area with the geometrical area of the solid. Unfortunately, comparisons of this kind are relatively rare on account of experimental difficulties. The choices are to work with, say, single crystals having a well defined surface, when techniques of quite extraordinary sensitivity will be needed for measurement of the adsorption or, to obtain a larger surface area by use of thin sheets, narrow rods or small spheres, and run the risk that the surface will not be truly smooth so that the actual area will exceed the geometrical area. 

Maximum information is obtained by making Raman measurements on oriented, transparent single crystals. The essentials of the experiment are sketched in Figure 3. The crystal is aligned with the crystallographic axes parallel to a laboratory coordinate system defined by the directions of the laser beam and the scattered beam. A useful shorthand for describing the orientational relations (the Porto notation) is illustrated in Figure 3 as z(xz) y. The first symbol is the direction of the laser beam the second symbol is the polarization direction of the laser beam the third symbol is the polarization direction of the scattered beam and the fourth symbol is the direction of the scattered beam, all with respect to the laboratory coordinate system. 

Of these, the most extensive use is to identify adsorbed molecules and molecular intermediates on metal single-crystal surfaces. On these well-defined surfaces, a wealth of information can be gained about adlayers, including the nature of the surface chemical bond, molecular structural determination and geometrical orientation, evidence for surface-site specificity, and lateral (adsorbate-adsorbate) interactions. Adsorption and reaction processes in model studies relevant to heterogeneous catalysis, materials science, electrochemistry, and microelectronics device failure and fabrication have been studied by this technique. 

Most of the published promotional kinetic studies have been performed on well defined (single crystal) surfaces. In many cases atmospheric or higher pressure reactors have been combined with a separate UHV analysis chamber for promoter dosing on the catalyst surface and for application of surface sensitive spectroscopic techniques (XPS, UPS, SIMS, STM etc.) for catalyst characterization. This attempts to bridge the pressure gap between UHV and real operating conditions. 

Table 3.6. Experimental activation energies and pre-exponential factors for CO and NO desorbing from a range of clean and well-defined single crystals. All data were obtained in the low coverage regime. [From V.P. Zhdanov, J. Pavlicek and Z. Knor, Catal. Rev.-Sci.

Therefore, in many fundamentally oriented studies the complex catalyst is replaced by a simplified model, which is better defined. Such models range from supported particles from which all promoters have been removed, via well-defined particles deposited on planar substrates, to single crystals (Fig. 4.1). With the latter we are in the domain of surface science, where a wealth of informative techniques is available that do not work on technical catalysts. 

CO oxidation and the reaction between CO -t NO have been extensively studied. Much less is known about hydrocarbon oxidation, and the role of hydrocarbons in reducing NO is only beginning to be explored. Surface science studies with reactions on well-defined single-crystal surfaces have contributed significantly to our understanding, for an overview see B.E. Nieuwenhuys, Adv. Catal. 44 (1999) 259. 

Propose a strategy for bridging the gap between the world of adsorption and reaction on well-defined single-crystal surfaces and the world of supported catalysts in high-pressure reactors. 

In terms of photoelectrode material quality, single crystals comprise a rational choice since their bulk properties can be controlled better and their influence on cell performance may be evaluated in a rather accurate manner, as being microstruc-turally well-defined solids. However, the cost and convenience of single-crystal preparation are not suited to the practical requirement of cheap device components. Polycrystalline photoelectrodes are advantageous in terms of fabrication cost, ability to prepare large areas in one operation, and material economy. 

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