| Abstract
| - Results for the binding of carbon monoxide and oxygen along with the oxidation of CO in thepresence of atomic Au- have been obtained utilizing a fast-flow reactor mass spectrometer. In addition,density functional calculations have been performed to explain the experimental findings. It was observedthat upon oxygen addition to the metal plasma, gold oxide species of the form AuOn-, where n = 1−3,were produced. The addition of carbon monoxide to the preoxidized gold atom revealed that AuO-andAuO3- promote the oxidation of CO. Density functional calculations on structures and their energeticsconfirmed the experimental findings and allowed us to propose mechanisms for the oxidation of carbonmonoxide. The reactions of CO with AuO1,3- proceed via complex formation with CO bound to the oxygenatom, followed by either cleavage of the Au−O bond or complex rearrangement to form a weakly boundCO2 unit, leading in both cases to the emanation of CO2.
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