ABNORMALLY LARGE DEUTERIUM UPTAKE ON SMALL TRANSITION-METAL CLUSTERS

Deuterium uptake experiments on gas phase transition metal cluster cations of Ni, Pt and Rh show that the small (< 10 Å dia.) clusters can bind many (up to 8) deuterium atoms per metal atom in the cluster, in contast to (H(D)/M)max ratios near unity typically reported for single crystal metal surfaces and in previous uptake experiments on nickel and iron clusters [11]. Abnormally large (H(D)/M)max ratios appear to be the rule rather than the exception for small transition metal clusters, an effect which has strong implications in chemical and catalytic processes involving hydrogen chemisorption. © 1990 J.C. Baltzer A.G. Scientific Publishing Company.