Investigation of Ammonia Oxidation over Copper with In Situ NEXAFS in the Soft X-Ray Range: Influence of Pressure on the Catalyst Performance

The oxidation of ammonia over polycrystalline copper was investigated by means of in situ NEXAFS (near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure) spectroscopy in the soft X-ray range. The reaction, carried out in a 1:12 excess of oxygen, was observed by mass spectrometry. The simultaneous detection of the surface electronic structure and its catalytic performance allows correlation of different reaction products to the current surface structure of the catalyst. It is shown that a change in total pressure from 0.4 to 1.2 mbar severely affects the reaction path. Copper(I) nitride was identified as poison and a copper oxide was found to be the active phase for the selective oxidation of ammonia to nitrogen.