The characterization of thin platinum films on alumina

Industrial metal catalysts are usually in the form of small metal particles supported on a porous oxide. The typical size of these metal particles ranges between 1.0 and 10.0 nm and it is well known that the particle size and the oxide substrate can affect the catalytic properties of the metal for some important reactions. Previous work with adsorption on small particles has indicated that desorption temperatures and the ability to dissociate CO can also be affected by the particle size. To further investigate these size and substrate effects, the authors have examined the adsorption properties of several simple gases on small Pt particles supported on alumina using temperature programmed desorption (TPD). The author show that the desorption curves for CO, H/sub 2/, and NO on these particles are very similar to curves measured on single crystals. The details of sample preparation and characterization have been described previously. Samples were prepared by vapor depositing Pt onto an alumina substrate which was formed by exposing an Al film to O/sub 2/. Auger electron spectroscopy was used to monitor surface cleanliness and to characterize the growth of the Pt on the substrate. As reported previously, the Pt grew in a layer-by-layer manner at both 90K and 300K. This film aggregated into clusters when the sample was heated above 650K and the average size of these particles could be determined from the saturation coverage of CO and from the quantity of metal deposited, as measured using a film thickness monitor. All adsorption measurements reported in this paper were made on samples heated above 650K