Toward High Activity and Durability: An Oxygen-Rich Boron Nitride-Supported Au Nanoparticles for 4-Nitrophenol Hydrogenation

Abstract

Catalytic hydrogenation of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) is widely recognized as one of the most effective solutions to deal with the water-related environmental issues, where catalysts with high activity and long cycle life are always pursued. In this paper, oxygen-rich boron nitride (BNO)-supported Au nanoparticles (Au/BNO) were proposed to serve as catalysts for 4-NP hydrogenation. Our results show that the Au nanoparticles are well dispersed on the highly porous BNO substrate with a small particle size of 2.2 nm. Under the optimal reaction conditions, the 4-NP molecules could be completely reduced to 4-AP in 2.5 min over Au/BNO with a relatively high conversion rate constant of 2.25 min–1. Moreover, the as-synthesized Au/BNO is also highly stable with no visible efficiency decay after been reused for several times. The excellent durability of the catalyst could be ascribed to the strong anchoring strength between the Au nanoparticles and BNO substrate, leading to a negligible metal loss or particle agglomeration upon cycling. The role of O heteroatoms in promoting the activity and durability of the Au/BNO catalyst was further confirmed by first-principles calculations. Our simulation results indicate that the high activity of Au/BNO could be attributed to the strong π–π attraction between BNO and 4-NP, which facilitates the fast diffusion of 4-NP molecules to the surface of Au/BNO. The long cycle life of Au/BNO is correlated to the partially destroyed electronic conjugation of the substrate, leading to a relatively strong coordination interaction between BNO and the Au atom to stabilize the metal nanoparticles.

Substrate-Assisted Encapsulation of Pd-Fe Bimetal Nanoparticles on Functionalized Silica Nanotubes for Catalytic Hydrogenation of Nitroarenes and Azo Dyes

“…(a) Peak catalytic efficiency (e.g., TOF) toward 4-NP hydrogenation of the present catalyst in this work and other recently reported noble-metal NP-based catalysts reported within the recent 3 years. Data adapted from references. ,,− The inset in (a) is a plot of ln­( A / A 0 ) of 4-NP against time for the catalyst. Plots of ln­( A / A 0 ) against time of (b) CR hydrogenation and (c) MO hydrogenation.…”

Development of Au and 1D Hydroxyapatite Nanohybrids Supported on 2D Boron Nitride Sheets as Highly Efficient Catalysts for Dehydrogenating Glycerol to Lactic Acid

“…Specifically, ultrathin BN NSs exhibited high affinity toward the adsorption of glycerol molecules via electrostatic interactions and, thus, adsorbed glycerol molecules were converted into LA and other byproducts, over the catalytic sites of ultrathin BN NSs under base conditions. 34 Meanwhile, Au/BN catalysts showed an enhanced conversion efficiency of glycerol (75%), yield (55%), and higher LA selectivity (74%) than pure BN NSs, due to higher catalytic activity of Au NPs. Similar catalytic performance was observed over the surfaces of HAp/BN catalysts, though they produced higher LA yield (60%), LA selectivity (75%), with higher glycerol conversion efficiency (80%), along with noticeable formation of pyruvaldehyde selectivity (12%).…”

“…33−36 Recent studies have shown that BN nanohybrids, dispersed by Au NPs, show higher catalytic activity toward hydrogenation and reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) in 2.5 min, with a high conversion rate constant of 2.25 min −1 . 34 Thus, the potential for the individual catalytic activity of Au NPs, HAp, and BN NSs presents a good scope to study their synergistic catalytic performance through the synthesis of the Au/HAp/BN ternary nanocomposite and its application for glycerol conversion to LA. Previous studies used polydopamine as a "glue layer", which acted as a binding layer between Au NPs and BN NSs surfaces to prevent the agglomeration of individual NPs.…”

“…To meet these requirements, BN NSs could be used as a new substrate for HAp and noble metal NPs, due to their unique 2D hexagonal structure. Due to this distinctive hexagonal 2D structure, the surfaces of BN NSs are highly delocalized, due to surface electrons, which is considered to show high affinity toward adsorbing glycerol molecules. − Recent studies have shown that BN nanohybrids, dispersed by Au NPs, show higher catalytic activity toward hydrogenation and reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) in 2.5 min, with a high conversion rate constant of 2.25 min –1 . Thus, the potential for the individual catalytic activity of Au NPs, HAp, and BN NSs presents a good scope to study their synergistic catalytic performance through the synthesis of the Au/HAp/BN ternary nanocomposite and its application for glycerol conversion to LA.…”

A novel Au/electroactive poly(amic acid) composite as an effective catalyst for p-nitrophenol reduction

“…Heterogeneous catalysts based on metal nanoparticles (NPs) are promising tools for wastewater treatment. Typically, metal NPs are loaded onto a support such as carbon nanotube, 1 graphene, 2 boron nitride, 3 clay, 4 metal oxides, 5 or polymers 6 to prevent aggregation. Thus, improving the dispersion stability of metal NPs on a support is critical for the design and synthesis of high-performance heterogeneous catalysts.…”