Selective hydrogenation of CC bond over N-doped reduced graphene oxides supported Pd catalyst

•N-doped reduced graphene oxide (NRGO) is synthesized in an one-step hydrothermal reaction.•NRGO is especially adapted for anchoring ultrafine Pd nanoparticles.•The concentration of doped N results in a significant variation of Pd morphology.•Pd/NRGO is highly selective for the activation of CC or benzene ring.

In this work, N-doped reduced graphene oxides (NRGO) was synthesized via a facile urea-hydrothermal treatment of graphene oxide and used as support for ultrafine Pd nanoparticles (NPs). It was found that N in NRGO can improve the dispersion of Pd NPs. NRGO supported Pd catalyst (Pd/NRGO) is highly active and selective for the hydrogenation of CC bond in cinnamaldehyde and hydrogenation of phenol to cyclohexanone under mild conditions. X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectra and transmission electron microscopy characterizations confirmed the interaction between NRGO and Pd enhanced with the amount of N atom in NRGO. Raman spectroscopy of adsorbed cinnamaldehyde on Pd/NRGO suggested that NRGO played a positive role in the selective activation of CC bond in cinnamaldehyde.

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