Synthesis of high-surface-area micro/mesoporous ZnAl2O4 catalyst support and application in selective hydrogenation of o-chloronitrobenzene

High-surface-area ZnAl2O4 with micro/mesoporous frameworks was synthesized via a facile one-pot solvothermal approach without using any surfactants or post-treatment. The results revealed that the textural properties of micro/mesoporous ZnAl2O4 were tuned by changing alcohol/water mixture solvents used in solvothermal synthesis and Ag nanoparticles were dispersed uniformly on the surface of ZnAl2O4 supports. Especially, the supported Ag catalyst on the microporous ZnAl2O4 synthesized in methanol/water solvent exhibited good catalytic performance for liquid phase selective hydrogenation of o-chloronitrobenzene to o-chloroaniline, owing to the high dispersion of Ag nanoparticles and the strong metal-support interaction.

► Micro/mesoporous ZnAl2O4 was fabricated via one-pot solvothermal approach.
► The textural properties of ZnAl2O4 were tuned by changing alcohol/water solvents.
► Ag nanoparticles could be dispersed uniformly and stably on the ZnAl2O4 supports.
► Supported catalysts exhibited good catalytic performance in selective hydrogenation.