Tribochemical properties of metastable states of transition metals

Mechanical forces can be used to trigger chemical reactions through activating bonds and to direct the course of such reactions in organic materials, particularly in polymers. In inorganic materials, the small molecules present significant challenges in directing the reaction kinetics. This dissertation studied the dynamics and kinetics of oxidation of transitional metals, particularly on tantalum through mechanical forces. This is a new area of research in surface science. Experimentally using a combined electrochemical and mechanical manipulation technique, we compared the equilibrium and non-equilibrium oxidation processes and states of tantalum. An experimental setup was developed with an electrochemical system attached to a sliding mechanical configuration capable of friction force measurement. The surface chemistry of a sliding surface, i.e., tantalum, was controlled through the electrolyte. The mechanical force was fixed and the dynamics of the surface was monitored in situ through a force sensor. The formation of non-equilibrium tantalum oxides was found in fluid environments of hydrogen peroxide, acetic acid and deionized water. We found that the mechanical energy induced the non-stable state reactions leading to metal-stable oxides. Analytically, we compared the energy dispersion, reaction kinetics, and investigate physical chemical reactions. We proposed a modified Arrhenius equation to predict the effect of mechanical energy on non-spontaneous reaction under nonequilibrium conditions. At the end, we also propose a modified Pourbaix diagram known as the Kar-Liang diagram. The Kar-Liang diagram helps to understand the behavior of tantalum under non-equilibrium conditions. A complete understanding of the tribochemical reaction of tantalum is achieved through this dissertation. The dissertation contains six chapters. After the introduction and approach, oxidation of tantalum is discussed in Chapter IV, kinetics in Chapter V. The nonequilibrium Kar-Liang diagram is discussed in Chapter VI, followed by conclusion. This research has important impacts on the field of surface science in understanding the basics of mechanochemical reactions. The resulting theory is beneficial to understand chemical-mechanical planarization (CMP) and to optimize the current industrial processes in microelectronics in making integrated circuits.