| The work presented in this dissertation originates from collaborative research projects. The majority of the work was developed from a collaboration of the Sherwood group with Luxfer Gas Cylinders while a smaller project was established with Professor Keith Hohn. The focus of the work is the consideration of the surface chemistry of ultra high purity aluminum, aluminum alloys and aluminum oxides, studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The goals of the research were (1) to develop a "new" method for the formation of the protective aluminum oxyhydroxide coating, boehmite, on the surface of an aluminum alloy using ultra high purity aluminum as a standard and (2) to understand the surface chemistry of an alumina supported catalyst for the catalytic partial oxidation of ethane.; The goal of developing a "new" method for the formation of boehmite on the surface of an aluminum alloy was achieved and the factors that promote its formation are discussed. It will be shown that careful consideration of the initial surface chemistry is a crucial step in the process. It will also be shown that the analysis of valence band XPS spectra by difference spectra is a useful technique for identifying the individual components of a surface that contains multiple, non-interactive constituents. A key aspect to the technique lies in one's ability to independently identify each of the individual components. While this can be accomplished by obtaining experimental spectra from model compounds or synthetic spectra from calculations, the important point here is that these spectra are invaluable for the analysis of complex valence band data.; The investigation of the surface chemistry of the alumina supported catalyst revealed some interesting results concerning the oxidation and behavior of platinum on the surface of an alumina substrate. The surface was examined before and after the reaction and the role of chlorine was investigated. The XPS data was analyzed with a curve fitting program which was provided by Professor Sherwood. |
