Facile synthesis of Pd nanoparticles encapsulated into hollow carbon nanospheres with robust catalytic performance

• The Pd NPs embedded into hollow carbon spheres have been successfully prepared.
• The present method is facile, efficient and suitable for large-scale production.
• The Pd NPs are uniformly confined into the hollow carbon spheres.
• The confined Pd NPs show robust catalytic performance.

Pd nanoparticles (NPs) encapsulated into hollow carbon spheres (Pd@HCS) have been prepared by a feasible template method. The present method is facile, efficient and suitable for large-scale production. The as-prepared Pd NPs are not only uniformly confined into the hollow carbon spheres, but also partly embedded in the inner surface of the carbon shell, which could effectively prevent Pd NPs from aggregation or leaching during the reaction. The obtained Pd@HCS nanocomposite exhibits robust catalytic performance in the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol, comparing with that of commercial carbon nanotube supported Pd NPs.

A facile and large-scale synthesis using template-based procedure gives Pd nanoparticles uniformly encapsulated into the hollow carbon spheres (see pictures). The obtained Pd@HCS nanocomposite exhibits excellent catalytic performance, compared with that of the commercial carbon nanotube supported Pd catalysts.Figure optionsDownload high-quality image (90 K)Download as PowerPoint slide