KINETIC MODELING OF SURFACE RATE-PROCESSES

A hierarchical review is given of the modeling of surface rate processes. The following levels of sophistication of kinetic modeling are discussed (in the following order): (1) Langmuirian adsorption and desorption with random adsorbate distributions; (2) precursor-mediated adsorption and desorption in the absence of lateral interactions employing both kinetic and statistical approaches; (3) Langmuirian and precursor-mediated adsorption and desorption, with lateral interactions, treated using mean-field approximations; and (4) Monte Carlo simulations. Although this discussion encompasses the past sixty years of research in the field, emphasis is placed on the considerable advances in our understanding that have been made in the past thirty years.