Monte Carlo simulations of surface chemical reactions: Irreversible phase transitions and oscillatory behaviour Original Research Article

Motivated from experiments on the catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide on platinum surfaces, two lattice gas models are studied. These models exhibit irreversible phase transitions between a reactive regime and a state where the surface is poisoned by CO. Furthermore, since adsorbate-induced reconstructions of the catalyst surface are considered, both models also exhibit oscillatory behaviour of the rate of reaction and reactant concentration.