Ostwald ripening in a Pt/SiO2 model catalyst studied by in situ TEM

Sintering of Pt nanoparticles dispersed on a planar SiO(2) support was studied by in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A time-lapsed TEM image series of the Pt nanoparticles, acquired during the exposure to 10 mbar synthetic air at 650 degrees C, reveal that the sintering was governed by the Ostwald ripening mechanism. The in situ TEM images also provide information about the temporal evolution of the Pt particle size distribution and of the growth or decay of the individual nanoparticles. The observed Pt nanoparticle changes compare well with predictions made by mean-field kinetic models for ripening, but deviations are revealed for the time-evolution for the individual nanoparticles. A better description of the individual nanoparticle ripening is obtained by kinetic models that include local correlations between neighboring nanoparticles in the atom-exchange process

Prospects for hydrogen storage in graphene

Hydrogen-based fuel cells are promising solutions for the efficient and clean delivery of electricity. Since hydrogen is an energy carrier, a key step for the development of a reliable hydrogen-based technology requires solving the issue of storage and transport of hydrogen. Several proposals based on the design of advanced materials such as metal hydrides and carbon structures have been made to overcome the limitations of the conventional solution of compressing or liquefying hydrogen in tanks. Nevertheless none of these systems are currently offering the required performances in terms of hydrogen storage capacity and control of adsorption/desorption processes. Therefore the problem of hydrogen storage remains so far unsolved and it continues to represent a significant bottleneck to the advancement and proliferation of fuel cell and hydrogen technologies. Recently, however, several studies on graphene, the one-atom-thick membrane of carbon atoms packed in a honeycomb lattice, have highlighted the potentialities of this material for hydrogen storage and raise new hopes for the development of an efficient solid-state hydrogen storage device. Here we review on-going efforts and studies on functionalized and nanostructured graphene for hydrogen storage and suggest possible developments for efficient storage/release of hydrogen at ambient conditions

Direct Observations of Oxygen-induced Platinum Nanoparticle Ripening Studied by In Situ TEM

This study addresses the sintering mechanism of Pt nanoparticles dispersed on a planar, amorphous Al2O3 support as a model system for a catalyst for automotive exhaust abatement. By means of in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the model catalyst was monitored during the exposure to 10 mbar air at 650 degrees C. Time-resolved image series unequivocally reveal that the sintering of Pt nanoparticles was mediated by an Ostwald ripening process. A statistical analysis of an ensemble of Pt nanoparticles shows that the particle size distributions change shape from an initial Gaussian distribution via a log-normal distribution to a Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner (LSW) distribution. Furthermore, the time-dependency of the ensemble-averaged particle size and particle density is determined. A mean field kinetic description captures the main trends in the observed behavior. However, at the individual nanoparticle level, deviations from the model are observed suggesting in part that the local environment influences the atom exchange process

Supported nanoclusters: Preadsorbates tuning catalytic activity

Using a density-functional approach, we investigate the reactivity of supported metal nanoclusters. We focus on the sequential adsorption of N-2 molecules on a Fe nanocluster supported by an MgO substrate. For an increasing number of N atoms preadsorbed on the nanocluster, we found that the binding energy of the N-2 molecule increases, and can become higher than that of its dissociation products, in marked contrast with the behavior at the respective metallic surface. We identify the electrostatic interaction as a primary factor determining this behavior, and discuss the observed trends in terms of interactions with highest occupied and lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals

Nitrogen adsorption on a supported iron nanocluster

Sequential adsorption of N atoms on a MgO(100) supported Fe-7 cluster is studied using a density functional approach. For the number of adsorbates varying between one and six, the most favorable adsorption geometries are determined and the corresponding potential energy diagram is given. Up to five N atoms are found to bind strongly to the oxide supported cluster, with binding energies ranging from 0.98 to 1.11 eV per N atom. When a sixth N atom is added to the Fe-7/MgO(100) cluster with five preadsorbed N atoms, the potential energy sharply increases due to the strong repulsive interaction between N adsorbates at short distances. The MgO(100) support plays an important role in increasing the binding energy of the adsorbed species. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier Ltd

Effect of Carbon Adsorption on the Isomer Stability of Ir4 Clusters

The atomic structure and electronic properties of gas-phase and MgO(100)-supported iridium tetramers are studied using density functional theory. At variance with experimental data, the most stable Ir4 isomer on MgO(100) is the square one, as in the gas phase, and the metastable tetrahedral isomer is highly distorted by interactions with the substrate. In the presence of a single carbon adatom, the most stable structure of Ir4 is tetrahedral for both environments and the structural distortion of the adsorbed cluster is reduced. On MgO(100), the binding energy of a C adatom to tetrahedral Ir4 is 1.6 eV larger than that to the square isomer, due to strong interactions between C-2p orbitals and a low-energy unoccupied molecular orbital of tetrahedral Ir4

Electronic properties of an epitaxial silicon oxynitride layer on a 6H-SiC(0001) surface: A first-principles investigation

Using a density functional scheme, the authors investigate the electronic properties of an epitaxial silicon oxynitride layer on a 6H-SiC(0001) surface, as recently realized experimentally. Simulated scanning-tunneling-microscopy images of filled and empty states agree well with the experiment, lending support to the proposed atomic structure. In accord with the experiment, the local density of states indicates that the electronic band gap in the thin silicate layer at the surface is close to that of bulk SiO2. The authors show that this effect results from the surface of the epitaxial adlayer acting as a high-barrier potential for the SiC states induced in the oxide band gap

Nitrogen fixation at passivated Fe nanoclusters supported by an oxide surface: Identification of viable reaction routes using density functional calculations

Using density-functional calculations, we investigate the possibility of ammonia synthesis at supported Fe nanoclusters along catalytic routes closely resembling those in biological nitrogen fixation. To achieve similar catalytic conditions as at the active site of the enzyme nitrogenase, the clusters are passivated with either S or N atoms. From calculated potential-energy profiles for the N-2 hydrogenation, we find that low-temperature synthesis of ammonia is viable at the clusters passivated by N atoms due to the strong binding energy of the N-2 molecule in the initial adsorption step