CO adsorption and reaction on clean and oxygen-covered Au(211) surfaces

We have used primarily temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) and infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy (IRAS) to investigate CO adsorption on a Au(211) stepped single-crystal surface. The Au(211) surface can be described as a step-terrace structure consisting of three-atom-wide terraces of (111) orientation and a monatomic step with a (100) orientation, or 3(111) x (100) in microfacet notation. CO was only weakly adsorbed but was more strongly bound at step sites (12 kcal mol(-1)) than at terrace sites (6.5-9 kcal mol(-1)). The sticking coefficient of CO on the Au(211) surface was also higher (similar to 5x) during occupation of step sites compared to populating terrace sites at higher coverages. The nu(CO) stretching band energy in IRAS spectra indicated that CO was adsorbed at atop sites at all coverages and conditions. A small red shift of nu(CO) from 2126 to 2112 cm(-1) occurred with increasing CO coverage on the surface. We conclude that the presence of these particular step sites at the Au(211) surface imparts stronger CO bonding and a higher reactivity than on the flat Au(111) surface, but these changes are not remarkable compared to chemistry on other more reactive crystal planes or other stepped Au surfaces. Thus, it is unlikely that the presence or absence of this particular crystal plane alone at the surface of supported Au nanoparticles has much to do with the remarkable properties of highly active Au catalysts.