Cryogenic Carbon Monoxide Oxidation on Cuprous Oxide
Performing oxidation reactions at low temperatures using earth-abundant materials is crucial for advancing solutions for sustainable chemistry. CO oxidation serves as a benchmark reaction to characterize oxidation and to advance fundamental concepts in surface chemistry. While there are several examples of CO oxidation occurring on metal oxides at low temperatures, from 300 K to ∼200 K, reactivity in the cryogenic temperature regime typically requires a metal nanoparticle on a metal oxide. Here, we show oxygen atoms on the (111) facet of Cu<sub>2</sub>O react with CO to form CO<sub>2</sub> at temperatures below 100 K. Combining spectroscopic experimental evidence with calculations, we propose a low barrier path for CO oxidation at reconstructed surface sites on Cu<sub>2</sub>O(111). This finding is a rare example of an earth-abundant metal oxide, in this case copper, that can provide highly reactive multifunctional sites, enabling both adsorption and reaction fundamental steps toward the efficient heterogeneous oxidation of chemicals.
Authors
- Xiaoming Hu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0177-1993)
- Kess Marks (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1805-4993)
- Darı́o Stacchiola (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5494-3205)
- Frank Abild‐Pedersen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1911-074X)
- Burcu Karagoz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1019-051X)
- Jonas Weissenrieder (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1631-4293)
- Tianhao Hu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2078-9275)
- Ashley R. Head (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8733-0165)
- Joakim Halldin Stenlid (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3832-2331)
- Markus Soldemo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0483-0602)
- H. Öström (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3920-6965)
Institutions
- Brookhaven National Laboratory (US)
- SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (US)
- Diamond Light Source (GB)
- Interface (United States) (US)
- Zero to Three (US)
- AlbaNova (SE)
- Stony Brook University (US)
- Chalmers University of Technology (SE)
- KTH Royal Institute of Technology (SE)
- Stanford University (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Angewandte Chemie International Edition
- Published
- 2025-11-10
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202515673
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Catalytic Processes in Materials Science
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.04
Funders
- U.S. Department of Energy
- Diamond Light Source
- VINNOVA
- Svenska Forskningsrådet Formas
- National Science Council
- Knut och Alice Wallenbergs Stiftelse
- Vetenskapsrådet
- Office of Science
- Basic Energy Sciences
- Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division
- Brookhaven National Laboratory