Hydrogen Spillover Enhanced Hydroxyl Formation and Catalytic Activity Toward CO Oxidation at the Metal/Oxide Interface

H-2-promoted catalytic activity of oxide-supported metal catalysts in low-temperature CO oxidation is of great interest but its origin remains unknown. Employing an FeO(111)/Pt(111) inverse model catalyst, we herewith report direct experimental evidence for the spillover of H(a) adatoms on the Pt surface formed by H-2 dissociation to the Pt FeO interface to form hydroxyl groups that facilely oxidize CO(a) on the neighboring Pt surface to produce CO2. Hydroxyl groups and coadsorbed water play a crucial role in the occurrence of hydrogen spillover. These results unambiguously identify the occurrence of hydrogen spillover from the metal surface to the noble metal/metal oxide interface and the resultant enhanced catalytic activity of the metal/oxide interface in low-temperature CO oxidation, which provides a molecular-level understanding of both H-2-promoted catalytic activity of metal/oxide ensembles in low-temperature CO oxidation and hydrogen spillover.