The transformation of CO₂ and CH₄ into alcohols or other hydrocarbon compounds is challenging because of the difficulties associated with the chemical activation of this highly stable molecules by heterogeneous catalysts. Pure metals and bimetallic systems used for this task have usually trouble binding CO₂ or CH₄ and, thus, low catalytic activity. Here, we will discuss a series of in-situ studies investigating different mechanisms or approaches for C-O and C-H bond activation. They illustrate the advantages of metal-oxide and metal-carbide interfaces when aiming at the conversion of CO₂ or CH₄ into methanol. CeOx/Cu(111), Cu/CeOx/TiO₂(110) and Cu/TiC(001) exhibit an activity for the CO₂ → CH₃OH conversion that is 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than that of a benchmark Cu(111) catalyst. In the Cu-ceria and Cu-TiC interfaces, the combination of metal and oxide (or carbide) centers affords complementary chemical properties that lead to special reaction pathways for methanol synthesis. Metal-oxide and metal-carbide interfaces also can be tune for the activation and conversion of CH₄.

Chromium (Cr) ferrite catalysts are industrially employed for the water gas shift reaction in order to provide large amounts of molecular hydrogen.[1] However, the European REACH legislation demands that hexavalent Cr be banned from all catalysts used in industrial processes due to its toxicity. Consequently, alternative metals are sought to fulfill the role of Cr species in the corresponding compounds.[2] It is therefore necessary to obtain a fundamental understanding and characterization of Cr on iron oxides.

In this talk, we present the investigation of Cr species on Fe₃O₄(001) by means of STM and XPS at room temperature. We show the behavior during exposure to water gas shift reactants (i.e., CO and H₂O) and upon high temperature treatment. The latter is of utmost importance since the water gas shift reaction is conducted at temperatures up to 500°C.[1] The results are compared to the behavior of other transition metals and discussed with respect to implications for applied catalysis.[3]

[1] Häussinger, Lohmüller, Watson, Hydrogen, 2. Production. In: Ullmann’s Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, 2011

[2] Glassner, Int. Surf. Technol.14, p. 36, (2021)

[3] Bliem, Pavelec, Gamba, McDermott, Wang, Gerhold, Wagner, Osiecki, Schulte, Schmid, Blaha, Diebold, Parkinson, Phys. Rev. B 92, p. 075440 (2015)

Chirality is a feature of asymmetry describing the geometrical property of objects that cannot be mapped onto their mirror images like our hands as classic example. In chemistry, one observes chirality on the molecular level: two mirror images of chiral molecules (enantiomers) have only little difference in the structure, but this might cause a vast change in the biological activity.

Unfortunately, a fundamental understanding of chemical processes in chiral environments is challenging, as enantiosensitive detection methods must introduce chirality to distinguish enantiomers. Until recently, enantiospecific assignment of chiral gas phase molecules at low concentrations was not even possible. In the last decade, new enantiosensitive detection techniques have been invented based on photoionization of molecules (Photoelectron Circular Dichroism, PECD). Our group contributed to these advances by developing a unique technique that combines PECD with surface science. This approach allows the investigation of dynamics and kinetics of surface reactions of chiral molecules at the gas surface interface.

We use this technique for studies on heterogeneously catalyzed chiral surface reactions like the partial oxidation of olefins to epoxides on metal surfaces. For this, we combine PECD measurements with velocity resolved kinetics experiments, providing enantiosensitive information about reaction mechanisms at surfaces.

Though largely influencing the efficiency of a reaction, the molecular-scale details of the local environment of the reactants are experimentally inaccessible hindering an in-depth understanding of a catalyst’s reactivity, a prerequisite to maximizing its efficiency. We introduce a method to follow individual molecules and their largely changing environment during laser-induced reactions. The method is illustrated with a single-molecule resolution on two examples, the dissociation of halogenated benzene molecules adsorbed on ice [1] and of CO₂ on two catalytically relevant surfaces, Ag(100) and Cu(111)[2]. Dissociation of halobenzene is triggered by delocalized excess electrons. The adsorption on ice sufficiently lowers the energy barrier for the transfer between themolecular orbitals to facilitate dissociation of bromo- and chloro- but not of fluorobenzene at cryogenic temperatures.For the CO₂dissociation, we reveal how the reactant’s surroundings evolve with progressing laser illumination and with it their propensity for dissociation. Our results shed light on the influence of solvent and products on reaction yields on the nanoscale.

[1]P. Auburger, I. Kemeny, C. Bertram, M. Lingges, M. Bockstedte, U. Bovensiepen, K. Morgenstern, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 206001 (2018)

Carbon nanospikes show excellent Faradaic efficiency and selectivity for electrochemical conversion of technologically important reactions, including CO₂ to ethanol in the presence of Cu [1] and N₂ to ammonia in the presence of Li [2]. Rates are higher than for other aqueous electrochemical approaches, including other low-dimensional carbon nanomaterials such as nanotubes, fibers, and foams, and much greater than for flat carbon surfaces. The essential attribute appears to be the sharp spike topography at which electric fields are enhanced. Transmission electron microscopy images reveal that films consist of a high density of nanospikes each 50-80 nm in height and terminated with a sharp tip of radius ~1 nm, i.e. a very high curvature.

We have explored the electric fields at the nanospikes by measurements of the absolute work function in comparison that of other carbon geometries using ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS). As samples were characterized after transfer through air, surface cleanliness was monitored with x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Annealing as-grown samples above 275 °C was required to produce a clean surface which has a 4.13 eV work function, a half volt lower than that of flat graphite. This reduction supports the idea that a strong electric field is generated by the nanospike topography which contributes to the electrochemical activity.

Contamination of the spiked surface raises the work function above that of the clean nanospikes. Work function values following exposure increased to 4.19 eV for hydrocarbons, 4.30 for air, 4.42 for water, and 4.48 for oxygen. Blunting the spikes, by exposure to an oxygen plasma, argon sputtering, or annealing to 800 °C results in a work function close to that of flat graphite, 4.62 eV. An unusual double onset in the UPS secondary electron intensity is observed after absorbing hydrocarbons on clean nanospikes. This double onset has not been reported on metal surfaces and appears to be unique to carbon substrates. The energy difference between the two onsets, about 0.4 eV is close to that of a typical C-H stretch in hydrocarbons suggesting the lower energy onset may originate in inelastic scattering of photoelectrons.

* This work was supported by Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences (CNMS), which is a US Department of Energy, Office of Science User Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

[1] Y. Song, et al., Chemistry Select 1 (19), 6055 (2016).

[2] Y. Song, et al., Sci. Adv. 4(4)(2018).