Palladium nanoparticles supported by amyloid fibrils: From size controllable synthesis to extremely high catalytic performance

• Biotemplated synthesis of Palladium Nanoparticles (Pd NPs).
• The size-controlled Pd NPs are very uniform.
• The Pd-insulin demonstrates extremely high catalytic activity at a very low Pd loading.

Palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) play an important role as catalysts in various chemical reactions. In this paper, a new strategy is developed to synthesize thin films of biomolecule-supported metallic palladium nanoparticles by the alternative deposition of insulin fibrils and aged sodium tetrachloropalladate (II) on a solid substrate in the absence of any external reducing agents. The formation of metal Pd NPs was confirmed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The unique Pd-insulin exhibits extremely high catalytic activity in Suzuki coupling reactions at a very low Pd loading of 5.0 × 10−2 mol%.

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