CO oxidation on a model Cu/Rh(100) catalyst

The reaction between carbon monoxide and molecular oxygen on a model Cu/Rh(100) bimetallic catalyst was studied at 455 K using a CO/O₂ = 2 reactant gas mixture at a total pressure of 10.0 Torr. A maximum in the initial activity was observed at a Cu coverage of 1.3 monolayers. However, the Cu overlayers were found to be unstable at the reaction conditions employed in that the Cu films interact strongly with surface oxygen to form three-dimensional CuO_x clusters. The morphological modifications were found to influence markedly the catalytic properties of the surface. However, the initial catalytic activity and surface morphology of the Cu films could be restored by flashing the sample to > 750 K.