Work

Movement of palladium nanoparticles in hollow graphitised nanofibres: the role of migration and coalescence in nanocatalyst sintering during the Suzuki–Miyaura reaction

Year: 2018

Type: article

Abstract: The evolution of individual palladium nanoparticle (PdNP) catalysts in graphitised nanofibres (GNF) in the liquid-phase Suzuki-Miyaura (SM) reaction has been appraised. The combination of identical location-transmission electron microscopy (IL-TEM) and a nano test tube approach allowed spatiotemporally continuous observations at the single nanoparticle level, revealing that migration and coalescence is the most significant pathway to coarsening of the nanocatalyst, rather than Ostwald ripening. IL-TEM gave unprecedented levels of detail regarding the movement of PdNP on carbon surfaces at the nanoscale, including size-dependent migration and directional movement, opening horizons for the optimisation of future catalysts through surface morphology design.

Source: Nanoscale

DOI: 10.1039/c8nr05267k

Authors: Rhys. W. Lodge, Graham. A. Rance, Michael. W. Fay, Andrei. N. Khlobystov

Institution: University of Nottingham

Language: English

Topic: Catalytic Cross-Coupling Reactions

Subfield: Organic Chemistry

Field: Chemistry

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: University of Nottingham, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

Awards: G1718773949, Triggering, Controlling and Imaging Chemical Reactions at the Single-Molecule Level by Electron Beam, Multi-Functional Nanoscale Platforms: Bridging the Gap between Molecular and Macroscopic Worlds, G8507940655