Adsorption and reactions of COx and NOx molecules on heterogeneous catalysts

By catalytic measurements and in situ spectroscopy, this thesis investigates the interaction of COx and NOx molecules with solid surfaces. Being a catalytic reaction of environmental relevance, the abatement of N2O over supported Ru catalysts was systematically studied. Both, catalytic activity measurements as well as mechanistic investigations were performed. Furthermore, an in situ infrared (IR) cell and a novel in situ photo IR cell were developed, optimized and successfully applied in the characterization of CO adsorption on supported Pt catalysts, of CO2 hydrogenation over Ru/Al2O3, and of photocatalytic reactions over TiO2-based catalysts.