An HREELS investigation of the adsorption and reaction of formic acid on the (0001)-Zn surface of ZnO

Abstract

Abstract The adsorption and reaction of HCOOH on the (0001)-Zn surface of ZnO was studied using high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS). Fourier deconvolution was used to remove phonon-phonon and phonon-adsorbate combination losses from the HREEL spectra of the adsorbate-covered surface, allowing adsorbed species to be easily identified. Formic acid was found to dissociate on the (0001)-Zn surface to form surface formate species and surface hydroxyl groups. The HREEL spectra indicate that formates are adsorbed in a monodentate configuration on this surface. This study represents one of the first examples of the use of HREELS to characterize adsorbed organic species on a metal oxide surface.