Correlating Fischer-Tropsch activity to Ru nanoparticle surface structure as probed by high-energy X-ray diffraction.
Synchrotron X-ray diffraction coupled to atomic pair distribution function analysis and Reverse Monte Carlo simulations is used to determine the atomic-scale structure of Ru nanoparticle catalysts for the Fischer-Tropsch reaction. The rate of CO hydrogenation strongly correlates with the abundance of surface atoms with coordination numbers of 10 and 11. DFT calculations confirm that CO dissociation proceeds with a low barrier on these Ru surface atom ensembles.
Schuit Institute of Catalysis, Eindhoven University of Technology, P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands. e.j.m.hensen@tue.nl.
Xian-Yang
XY
Quek
Ivo A W
IA
Filot
Robert
R
Pestman
Rutger A
RA
van Santen
Valeri
V
Petkov
Emiel J M
EJ
Hensen