The kinetics of D 2 desorption from Ni(110) (2 × 1)C in the presence of reactive intermediates

Abstract

A kinetic study of D 2 formation from HCOOD decomposition on Ni(110) (2 × 1)C was performed using the flash desorption technique. The surface structure and surface composition were monitored by low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). Flash curves were obtained using initial coverage and heating rate variations. D 2 formation exhibited a single second-order rate-determining step. Three different techniques were employed in obtaining the activation energy, two of which did not require the assumption of reaction order. Using an average value of 12.6 kcal/mole for the activation energy the pre-exponential factor was calculated to be 2.7 × 10 −4 cm 2 molecules −1 sec −1. Good agreement was achieved with the theoretically generated second-order flash curves only up to the peak temperature. The discrepancy on the high temperature side was explained using the model proposed by Clavenna and Schmidt utilizing a coverage dependent pre-exponential factor.