Photoemission studies of the adsorption and reaction of hydrogen and oxygen on platinum and platinum–gold alloys

Abstract

The adsorption of oxygen upon supported platinum and platinum–gold alloys, bulk polycrystalline, and single‐crystal platinum specimens can be monitored via changes in the Pt 4f levels. This effect has been used to detect the formation of oxides at low temperatures and to determine the adsorption site on alloy catalysts. The adsorption and subsequent reduction of oxygen on nickel and platinum (100) surfaces exhibit qualitatively different behavior, adsorption on nickel apparently not involving the d band. The kinetics of reduction of oxygen on Pt(100) indicated that a single site is required for dissociative hydrogen chemisorption.