1,3-dibromopropane in organic carbonates: A dissolvent for Au, Pt, Pd, and Rh: A simple way for mastering nanoparticle deposition at inert cathodic materials

The use of solvents with very high dielectric permittivity like propylene carbonate (PC) or ethylene carbonate (EC) appears to be the basis of the electro-catalytic reduction of 1,3-dibromopropane (DB3) at metallic interfaces, in particular at common precious metals (M = Au, Pt, Pd, and Rh). Quite unexpectedly, mixtures DB3/PC + EC were shown to efficiently dissolve those metals possibly via organo-metallic intermediates (through oxidative insertion of the metal M into the C–Br bond). Electrodeposition of nanoparticles M0 of small size (often << 50 nm) could be easily achieved onto cathodically polarized inactive materials like glassy carbon or graphite. Such modified solid surfaces were shown to possess electro-catalytical properties towards organic halides. The present method permits electro-deposition of a large series of metals under neutral conditions and useful for the building of composite materials.

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► 1,3-Dibromopropane (DB3): its electro-catalytic reduction at precious metals.
► DB3 in organic carbonates as a dissolvent of gold, platinum, and other precious metals.
► Generation by electron transfer of nanoparticles of Au, Pt, Pd, and Rh at carbon surfaces.
► Low size of NPs (< 50 nm) and their uniform deposition on solid surfaces.