Bifunctional composite microspheres of silica/lanthanide-polyoxometalates/Au: Study on luminescence and catalytic properties

• The bifunctional composite microspheres were fabricated.
• Both polyoxometalates and Au nanoparticles could be grafted on silica spheres.
• The composite particles exhibit the excellent luminescence and catalytic activity.
• The Au nanoparticles affect the luminescence properties of Eu3 + ions.

In this paper, the synthesis and properties of composite silica microspheres grafted with gold nanoparticles and lanthanide-polyoxometalates are described. This synthesis employs polyethyleneimine as the crosslink polymer to immobilize the Au nanoparticles and lanthanide-polyoxometalates on silica spheres, which results in the formation of bifunctional composite microspheres of silica/lanthanide-polyoxometalates/Au. The composite material was found to be catalytically active in the oxidation of styrene, and benzaldehyde and styrene oxide were the main products. Catalyzed oxidation of styrene demonstrates the size-dependent activity of catalysts and the smaller catalyst shows the higher selectivity. Moreover, the composite particles show bright red luminescence under UV light, which could be seen by naked eyes. The luminescence properties of composite material and the effect of Au nanoparticles on the luminescence of Eu ion were investigated, and energy could be more effectively transferred from ligand to lanthanide ion when Au nanoparticles were grafted on silica spheres. The integration of luminescent components and Au particles makes it possible to label catalyst and monitor the catalyzed reactions.