A Single‐Source Precursor Route toward Small‐Sized Nickel Particles Embedded into SiO₂ Sheet as Magnetic Separable Catalyst

Abstract

A single-source precursor route is presented to prepare smallsized Ni particles (∼ 5 nm) uniformly embedded into SiO 2 sheet (Ni/SiO 2). The synthetic process involved the coordination of APTES (3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane) with Ni 2 + to form NiÀ Si precursor in high yield, followed by pyrolysis under NH 3 atmosphere. During the heating, the Si component in the NiÀ Si precursor was transformed into SiO 2 , which could restrict the in-situ generated Ni from aggregation, resulting in the formation of the small-sized Ni particles. Small size is conducive to promoting the catalytic performance, and meanwhile SiO 2 protection plays a vital role in improving stability. During aromatic nitro reduction, Ni/SiO 2 shows excellent catalytic performance, which can be separated conveniently by an external magnet after use. The route is indicative of designing other catalysts protected by SiO 2 due to the versatile coordination ability of APTES with other metal ions (Fe, Co, Cu, etc).

The impact of Cu, Ni and Fe2O3 on the magnetic behavior and structural properties of FeSiO2 nanocomposite synthesized through ball milling

“…Numerous research studies have been conducted by scientific researchers, focusing on the reinforcement of the SiO 2 matrix with diverse particles, including Fe, FeNi, FeCo, Fe 2 O 3 , Cu, Ni, Al, Co, CuCu 2 O, NiCoSiO 2 , FeCu, and NiMn. These investigations span various applications across multiple fields, with the goal of enhancing both physical and magnetic properties [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. One of the attractive properties of iron particles incorporated in different matrix materials is that they present significant effective uniaxial anisotropy, despite their crystalline cubic symmetry [18,19].…”