Structure sensitivity of catalytic reactions

The rate and product distribution of chemical reactions catalyzed by metals can depend on the particle size of supported catalysts.This can be explained by the interaction between chemisorbed species and surface sites of different configuration in the metal associated with atoms in terrace, steps and kinks.Single-crystal catalysts are excellent models for studying these interactions.In this review, the contribution of single-crystal studies to the understanding of structure sensitivity in catalytic reaction is discussed.Reactions are classified in three types.Structure sensitive reactions, structure insensitive reactions and reactions that show both behaviors, depending on the experimental conditions.Several examples are discussed in each of the three categories.