Oxidation of a Platinum-Tin Alloy Surface during Catalytic CO Oxidation

We have investigated the surface composition of a well-ordered Pt3Sn(111) surface during CO oxidation with ambient pressure X-ray photoemission spectroscopy. Oxidation of tin in the surface coincides with the onset of catalytic conversion, and we observe significant differences in the oxidation state and morphology of the oxide formed depending on the gas composition, with an oxygen-rich mixture leading to formation of 2D wetting layers and a CO-rich mixture leading to formation of 3D oxide islands. Spontaneous oscillations in conversion are observed at 300 °C in the oxygen-rich gas mixture and attributed to the combined effects of site blocking by tin oxides and by CO. The results highlight the importance of gas-surface interactions in determining the nature of oxides formed and thus the type and number of interfacial sites under reaction conditions.