In situ FTIR spectrocopic studies of CO and CN- adsorbed on electrode of nanometer thin film of palladium in alkaline solutions

: The adsorption and coadsorption of CO and CN- on electrode of nanometer thin film of palladium (nm-Pd/GC) was studied by using in situ FTIR spectroscopy. The results demonstrated that the nm-Pd/GC electrode exhibited abnormal infrared effects (AIREs) in alkaline solutions as in acid solutions. The characters of AIREs, i.e., the inversion of the direction of IR band, the augmentation of FWHM and the significant enhancement of IR absorption by adsorbed species were observed in all cases of adsorption and coadsorption of CO and CN-. It has been illustrated that strong interaction is existed between adsorbed CO and CN- on nm-Pd/GC surface. The study has contributed towards understanding the surface processes of chemisorption as well as to reveal the origin of nanometer size-effects of thin film materials.