Preparation of Au/TiO2 nanocomposites and their catalytic activity for DPPH radical scavenging reaction

Au/TiO2 nanocomposites have been prepared by UV photolysis or chemical reduction of a Au(III) complex formed on a spherical or a rodlike TiO2 support, and their catalytic activity for 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging reaction was investigated. The chemical reduction with dimethylamine borane (DMAB) provided smaller gold nanoparticles than those synthesized by UV photolysis. Type of the TiO2 also affected the size of gold particles; smaller gold particles were deposited on the spherical TiO2 support than on rodlike one. For the radical scavenging reaction, the Au/TiO2 nanocomposites prepared by chemical reduction exhibited a higher catalytic activity than those photochemically prepared, and rodlike TiO2 provided a higher activity than spherical one. The effects of preparation methods and type of TiO2 supports on the catalytic activity are discussed.     

Influence of the Preparation Procedure on the Catalytic Activity of Gold Supported on Diamond Nanoparticles for Phenol Peroxidation

The catalytic activity of diamond‐supported gold nanoparticle (Au/D) samples prepared by the deposition/precipitation method have been correlated as a function of the pH and the reduction treatment. It was found that the most active material is the one prepared at pH 5 followed by subsequent thermal treatment at 300 °C under hydrogen. TEM images show that Au/D prepared under optimal conditions contain very small gold nanoparticles with sizes below 2 nm that are proposed to be responsible for the catalytic activity. Tests of productivity using large phenol (50 g L ^?1) and H₂O₂ excesses (100 g L ^?1) and reuse gives a minimum TON of 458,759 moles of phenol degraded per gold atom. Analysis of the organic compounds extracted from the deactivated solid catalyst indicates that the poisons are mostly hydroxylated dicarboxylic acids arising from the degradative oxidation of the phenyl ring. By determining the efficiency for phenol degradation and the amount of O₂ evolved two different reactions of H₂O₂ decomposition (the Fenton reaction at acidic pH values and spurious O₂ evolution at basic pH values) are proposed for Au/D catalysis. The activation energy of the two processes is very similar (ranging between 30 and 35 kJ mol^?1). By using dimethylsulfoxide as a radical scavenger and N‐tert‐butyl‐α‐phenylnitrone as a spin trap under aerated conditions, the EPR spectrum of the expected PBN? OCH₃ adduct was detected, supporting the generation of HO^., characteristic of Fenton chemistry in the process. Phenol degradation, on the other hand, exhibits the same activation energy as H₂O₂ decomposition at pH 4 (due to the barrierless attack of HO^. to phenol), but increases the activation energy gradually up to about 90 kJ mol^?1 at pH 7 and then undergoes a subsequent reduction as the pH increases reaching another minimum at pH 8.5 (49 kJ mol^?1).     

Titania supported gold nanoparticles as photocatalyst

This Perspective is focused on the photocatalytic activity of gold nanoparticles supported on titania (Au/TiO(2)). Titania is the most widely used photocatalyst, but its limited activity under visible light irradiation has motivated the quest for modified titania materials absorbing visible light. The review starts by justifying how doping with metallic elements is a related strategy, but different, to that leading to the use of Au/TiO(2) in photocatalysis. Data supporting and confirming the photoactivity of gold nanoparticles in colloidal solutions are briefly presented to justify the possibility of gold photosensitization of titania by electron injection into the conduction band. After describing the most common procedures used to prepare Au/TiO(2), the central part of this article is focused on the photocatalytic activity reported for Au/TiO(2) for hydrogen generation, dye decoloration, phenol decomposition and carboxylic acid degradation, among other processes. Emphasis is given to the role that parameters like Au loading, particle size, surface area, spatial structuring and others play on the photocatalytic activity. One important issue has been to distinguish those reports using visible light from those other in which direct titania excitation by UV light has been used. These Au/TiO(2) photocatalysts can find real applications in the near future for environmental remediation and for hydrogen generation.     

Strong metal-support interactions between gold nanoparticles and ZnO nanorods in CO oxidation

The catalytic performances of supported gold nanoparticles depend critically on the nature of support. Here, we report the first evidence of strong metal-support interactions (SMSI) between gold nanoparticles and ZnO nanorods based on results of structural and spectroscopic characterization. The catalyst shows encapsulation of gold nanoparticles by ZnO and the electron transfer between gold and the support. Detailed characterizations of the interaction between Au nanoparticles and ZnO were done with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and FTIR study of adsorbed CO. The significance of the SMSI effect is further investigated by probing the efficiency of CO oxidation over the Au/ZnO-nanorod. In contrast to the classical reductive SMSI in the TiO(2) supported group VIII metals which appears after high temperature reduction in H(2) with electron transfer from the support to metals, the oxidative SMSI in Au/ZnO-nanorod system gives oxygen-induced burial and electron transfer from gold to support. In CO oxidation, we found that the oxidative SMSI state is associated with positively charged gold nanoparticles with strong effect on its catalytic activity before and after encapsulation. The oxidative SMSI can be reversed by hydrogen treatment to induce AuZn alloy formation, de-encapsulation, and electron transfer from support to Au. Our discovery of the SMSI effects in Au/ZnO nanorods gives new understandings of the interaction between gold and support and provides new way to control the interaction between gold and the support as well as catalytic activity.     

Influence of Excitation Wavelength (UV or Visible Light) on the Photocatalytic Activity of Titania Containing Gold Nanoparticles for the Generation of Hydrogen or Oxygen from Water

Gold nanoparticles supported on P25 titania (Au/TiO(2)) exhibit photocatalytic activity for UV and visible light (532 nm laser or polychromatic light λ > 400 nm) water splitting. The efficiency and operating mechanism are different depending on whether excitation occurs on the titania semiconductor (gold acting as electron buffer and site for gas generation) or on the surface plasmon band of gold (photoinjection of electrons from gold onto the titania conduction band and less oxidizing electron hole potential of about -1.14 V). For the novel visible light photoactivity of Au/TiO(2), it has been determined that gold loading, particle size and calcination temperature play a role in the photocatalytic activity, the most active material (Φ(H2) = 7.5% and Φ(O2) = 5.0% at 560 nm) being the catalyst containing 0.2 wt % gold with 1.87 nm average particle size and calcined at 200 °C.     

Promoting Effects of Iron on CO Oxidation over Au/TiO2 Supported Au Nanoparticles

Fe-doped TiO₂ supported gold nanoparticles as high-performance CO oxidation catalysts were prepared. XRD data revealed that TiO₂ support was in an anatase phase. After calcination at 300℃, the sample showed nanotube structure, and the size of gold nanoparticles was 3.1 nm. When calcined at 500℃, most nanotubes broke, and gold nanoparticles grew up to 5.9 nm. XPS spectrum indicated the presence of Fe in the +3 oxidation state. Au/Fe-TiO₂(Au:1.44%, Fe:1.35%) calcined at 300℃ possessed the best catalytic activity, and it could completely convert CO at 25℃. The temperature of 100% CO conversion(T_100%) of Fe-free catalyst was 40℃. After the catalysts were stored at room temperature for 7 d, T_100% of Au/Fe-TiO₂ increased from 25℃ to 30℃, while T_100% of Fe-free catalyst increased from 40℃ to 80℃. The catalytic activity and storage stability of Au/TiO₂ could be improved by Fe-doping. The increase of specific surface area, generation of oxygen vacancies and new adsorption sites, depression of the growth of gold nanoparticles, and strong metal-support interaction were responsible for the promoting effect of iron on the catalytic performance of Au/TiO₂ for CO oxidation.     

Photodegradation of rhodamine B over semiconductor supported gold nanoparticles: The effect of semiconductor support identity

Rhodamine B (RB) is a toxic dye used extensively in textile industry, which must be remediated before its drainage to environment. In the present study, supported gold nanoparticles on commercially available titania and zincite were successfully prepared and then their activity on the photodegradation of RB under UV A light irradiation was evaluated. The synthesized photocatalysts were characterized by ICP, BET, XRD, TEM and EDX. Kinetic results showed that Au/TiO₂ was a photocatalyst inferior to Au/ZnO. This observation could be attributed to the strong reflection of UV irradiation by gold nanoparticles over TiO₂ support.     

Direct evidence of oxidized gold on supported gold catalysts

Supported gold catalysts have drawn worldwide interest due to the novel properties and potential applications in industries. However, the origin of the catalytic activity in gold nanoparticles is still not well understood. In this study, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy (TOF-SIMS) has been applied to investigate the nature of gold in Au (1.3 wt %)/gamma-Al2O3 and Au (2.8 wt %)/TiO2 catalysts prepared by the deposition-precipitation method. The SIMS spectrum of the supported gold catalysts presented AuO-, AuO2-, and AuOH- ion clusters. These measurements show direct evidence for oxidized gold on supported gold catalysts and may be helpful to gaining better understanding of the origin of the catalytic activity.     

Nanocatalysis on tailored shape supports: Au and Pd nanoparticles supported on MgO nanocubes and ZnO nanobelts

Active gold and palladium nanoparticles supported on MgO nanocubes and ZnO nanobelts and transition-metal-containing MgO nanobelts were synthesized by combining evaporation and deposition-precipitation techniques. The high activity and stability of the Au/CeO2 and Pd/CeO2 nanoparticle catalysts deposited on the MgO cubes are remarkable and imply that a variety of efficient catalysts can be designed and tested using this approach. The significant increase in the concentration of corner and edge sites in MgO nanocubes make them well-defined supports to study the detailed mechanism of the catalytic activity enhancement.     

镍掺杂对氧化铝纳米片负载金催化剂在CO氧化反应中的促进作用（英文）

负载型金催化剂在CO氧化反应中具有良好的低温活性,受到了研究者的广泛关注,其催化性能与载体的性质密切相关.氧化铝具有廉价易得、比表面积大和热稳定性好等优点.然而,作为一种非还原性载体,氧化铝提供活性氧物种的能力差,与还原性载体相比催化剂的CO氧化活性较低.理论计算和实验结果表明,在金催化剂中引入过渡金属镍能够有效促进氧分子在催化剂表面的吸附和活化,从而提升金催化剂活性.此外,过渡金属的存在能够提高金的分散度,增加活性位数目,防止在高温预处理过程中金颗粒的烧结,从而提高催化剂的活性和稳定性.基于上述考虑,本文在氧化铝纳米片合成过程中原位引入硝酸镍,以实现对氧化铝载体的改性,然后负载金并应用于CO氧化反应.结果表明,当载体中的Ni/Al摩尔比为0.05,金负载量为1wt%时,采用还原性气氛对催化剂进行预处理可以得到具有CO氧化性能优良的金催化剂, 20 oC下CO转化率即可达100%.预处理气氛能够显著影响催化活性,采用还原性气氛预处理后催化剂活性明显优于氧化性气氛预处理.采用X射线衍射(XRD)、高分辨透射电镜(HRTEM)、氢气程序升温还原(H2-TPR)、氧气程序升温脱附(O2-TPD)、CO吸附原位红外光谱(CO-DRIFT)和X射线光电子能谱(XPS)等表征手段进一步研究了镍掺杂对Au/Al2O3催化剂上CO氧化反应的促进作用机制.XRD测试未观察到明显的金或镍衍射峰,表明金或镍物种均为高分散.HRTEM结果进一步证实,引入镍物种后金颗粒的粒径由3.6 nm减小为2.4 nm,表明镍掺杂有助于提高金的分散度.而XPS结果显示,镍掺杂催化剂中金与镍存在电子转移,而镍仍以Ni O为主.H2-TPR结果表明,镍掺杂的催化剂前驱体中的金物种更容易被还原.O2-TPD结果证实,镍掺杂催化剂能够引入更多的氧空位,促进氧分子的吸附和活化,从而促进CO氧化反应的进行.CO-DRIFT结果表明,相比于氧化性气氛,采用还原性气氛预处理后金物种的电子云密度增加, CO吸附增强.而对于镍掺杂的催化剂,金物种吸附CO分子的能力进一步提高,有利于CO氧化反应的进行.综上,镍掺杂能够有效提高催化剂中金的分散度,增强催化剂对CO的吸附,促进氧气分子的吸附和活化,从而提高了催化剂的CO氧化活性.     

In situ time-resolved characterization of Au-CeO2 and AuOx-CeO2 catalysts during the water-gas shift reaction: presence of Au and O vacancies in the active phase

Synchrotron-based in situ time-resolved x-ray diffraction and x-ray absorption spectroscopies were used to study the behavior of nanostructured {Au+AuO(x)}-CeO(2) catalysts under the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction. At temperatures above 250 degrees C, a complete AuO(x)-->Au transformation was observed with high catalytic activity. Photoemission results for the oxidation and reduction of Au nanoparticles supported on rough ceria films or a CeO(2)(111) single crystal corroborate that cationic Au(delta+) species cannot be the key sites responsible for the WGS activity at high temperatures. The rate determining steps for the WGS seem to occur at the gold-ceria interface, with the active sites involving small gold clusters (<2 nm) and O vacancies.     

Green preparation of hollow mesoporous silica nanosphere inside-loaded gold nanoparticles and the catalytic activity

In this work, an active nano-catalyst with gold nanoparticles loaded in hollow mesoporous silica nanospheres (HMSNs/Au) was prepared by a one-pot sol-gel method, in which gold ions were loaded in hollow mesoporous silica spheres followed by sodium alginate reduction. The characterization of the HMSNs/Au were determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N₂ adsorption–desorption isotherms (BET). The high catalytic activity of HMSNs/Au, denoted as apparent turn-over frequency (TOF), was detected by UV-Vis spectrophotometer for the catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol (74.5 h^?1) and 2-nitrophenol (108.7 h^?1) in the presence of sodium borohydride solution due to the small gold nanoparticles size and overall exposure of active sites. It is expected that this ecofriendly approach to prepare inorganic composited nanoparticles as high active catalysts based on hollow mesoporous materials was a promising platform for loading noble metal nanoparticles.     

Radical trapping by gold chlorides forming organogold intermediates

Organogold compounds arising from the trapping of carbon-centered radicals by gold chlorides (AuCl, AuCl3, and HAuCl4) and colloidal gold have been characterized by different spectroscopic techniques. Laser flash photolysis has provided kinetic evidence of the occurrence of radical trapping in the microsecond time scale, while theoretical calculations give the energetics of the elementary steps. The trapping of carbon radicals by gold species observed here may explain why the presence of radical initiators enhance dramatically the activity of gold catalysts for some reactions occurring through radical intermediates.     

Plasmonic enhancement of gold nanoparticles on photocycloreversion reaction of diarylethene derivatives depending on particle size, distance from the particle surface, and irradiation wavelength

We newly synthesized various sized gold nanoparticles covered with photochromic polymers consisting of diarylethenes with various structures to investigate an effect of the gold nanoparticles on the photocycloreversion reaction of the diarylethene chromophores upon irradiation with visible light. The gold nanoparticles covered with the photochromic polymers exhibited reversible changes in localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) absorption along with the photochromic reaction depending on the diameter of the particle, the distance between the gold surface and the chromophore, and the structure of the diarylethene chromophore. The rate of the photocycloreversion reaction of the chromophores around the particle was enhanced by the gold nanoparticles and the degree of the enhancement was affected by the diameter of the particle and the distance from the gold surface, while a structural difference in the diarylethene chromophore had no effect on the degree of the enhancement. The larger enhancement of the photocycloreversion reaction was observed by irradiation at longer wavelength side than visible light corresponding to the LSPR frequency.     

One-electron oxidation of alcohols by the 1,3,5-trimethoxybenzene radical cation in the excited state during two-color two-laser flash photolysis

One-electron oxidation of alcohols such as methanol, ethanol, and 2-propanol by 1,3,5-trimethoxybenzene radical cation (TMB*+) in the excited state (TMB*+*) was observed during the two-color two-laser flash photolysis. TMB*+ was formed by the photoinduced bimolecular electron-transfer reaction from TMB to 2,3,5,6-tetrachlorobenzoquinone (TCQ) in the triplet excited-state during the first 355-nm laser flash photolysis. Then, TMB*+* was generated from the selective excitation of TMB*+ during the second 532 nm laser flash photolysis. Hole transfer rate constants from TMB*+* to methanol, ethanol, and 2-propanol were calculated to be (5.2 +/- 0.5) x 10(10), (1.4 +/- 0.3) x 10(11), and (3.2 +/- 0.6) x 10(11) M-1 s-1, respectively. The order of the hole transfer rate constants is consistent with oxidation potentials of alcohol. Formation of TCQH radical (TCQH*) with a characteristic absorption peak at 435 nm was observed in the microsecond time scale, suggesting that deprotonation of the alcohol radical cation occurs after the hole transfer and that TCQ radical anion (TCQ*-), generated together with TMB*+ by the photoinduced electron-transfer reaction, reacts with H+ to give TCQH*.     

Effect of size in oxygen electroreduction on gold over a wide range of pH

The electroreduction of molecular oxygen on polycrystalline gold and 20Au/C nanoparticles synthesized on XC72R soot is studied over a wide range of pH. Changes in the character of the polarization curves and a considerable increase in half-wave potential (～100 mV) upon transitioning from a compact to a nanodisperse metal were established. A triple increase in the exchange currents is observed for nanoparticles relative to polycrystalline gold. It is suggested that the enhancement of the catalytic activity of a nanodisperse metal is a result of changes in the electronic structure of the d-sublevel of surface atoms.     

Gold nanoparticle-catalyzed environmentally benign deoxygenation of epoxides to alkenes

We have developed a highly efficient and green catalytic deoxygenation of epoxides to alkenes using gold nanoparticles (NPs) supported on hydrotalcite [HT: Mg(6)Al(2)CO(3)(OH)(16)] (Au/HT) with alcohols, CO/H(2)O or H(2) as the reducing reagent. Various epoxides were selectively converted to the corresponding alkenes. Among the novel metal NPs on HT, Au/HT was found to exhibit outstanding catalytic activity for the deoxygenation reaction. Moreover, Au/HT can be separated from the reaction mixture and reused with retention of its catalytic activity and selectivity. The high catalytic performance of Au/HT was attributed to the selective formation of Au-hydride species by the cooperative effect between Au NPs and HT.     

Inhibition at perimeter sites of Au/TiO2 oxidation catalyst by reactant oxygen

TiO(2)-supported gold nanoparticles exhibit surprising catalytic activity for oxidation reactions compared to noble bulk gold which is inactive. The catalytic activity is localized at the perimeter of the Au nanoparticles where Au atoms are atomically adjacent to the TiO(2) support. At these dual-catalytic sites an oxygen molecule is efficiently activated through chemical bonding to both Au and Ti(4+) sites. A significant inhibition by a factor of 22 in the CO oxidation reaction rate is observed at 120 K when the Au is preoxidized, caused by the oxygen-induced positive charge produced on the perimeter Au atoms. Theoretical calculations indicate that induced positive charge occurs in the Au atoms which are adjacent to chemisorbed oxygen atoms, almost doubling the activation energy for CO oxidation at the dual-catalytic sites in agreement with experiments. This is an example of self-inhibition in catalysis by a reactant species.     

Photocatalytic Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using Preyssler Acid and Their Photocatalytic Activity

Preyssler acid H14[NaP5W30O110] was used as reducing agent and stabilizer for the synthesis of gold nanoparticles by photolysis of Au(III)/Preyssler acid/propan-2-ol solution.Preyssler acid plays both the role of transferring electrons from propan-2-ol to Au(III) and stabilizing the nanoparticles.Propan-2-ol was used as sacrificial reagent for the photoformation of reduced Preyssler acid.Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy,transmission electron microscopy (TEM),and particle size distribution (PSD) measurements.The synthesized Au NPs had a uniform hexagonal morphology and their size was about 17 nm.The catalytic performance of these NPs for photodegradation of methyl orange (MeO) was investigated in aqueous solution.UV-Vis studies showed that Au NPs can catalyze photodegradation of this azo dye.The pseudo-first-order rate constants were also calculated for this reaction.     

葡萄糖在纳米金修饰金电极上电化学行为研究

利用电还原氯金酸制备了纳米金(Nano-gold,NG)修饰Au电极。该电极对葡萄糖有催化作用,可能是由于纳米金降低了OH-表面吸附能,增加了OH-在电极表面的吸附量。通过循环伏安法研究了扫描速度、温度、本体浓度和溶液pH值对葡萄糖氧化的影响。