Ligand-free gold nanoclusters confined in mesoporous silica nanoparticles for styrene epoxidation
Buthainah Alshankiti, Walid Al‐Maksoud, Madathumpady Abubaker Habeeb Muhammed, Dalaver H. Anjum, Basem Moosa, Jean‐Marie Basset, Niveen M. Khashab
Abstract
-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) as a terminal oxidant resulted in an 88% conversion of styrene in 12 h with a 74% selectivity towards styrene epoxide. Our observations suggest that this remarkable catalytic performance is due to the small size of Au NCs and the strong interaction between gold and the MSNs. This catalytic conversion is environmentally friendly as it is solvent free. We believe our synthetic approach can be extended to other metal NCs offering a wide range of applications.
Topics & Concepts
NanoclustersStyreneLigand (biochemistry)Mesoporous silicaMesoporous materialNanoparticleColloidal goldMaterials scienceNanotechnologyChemical engineeringChemistryCopolymerOrganic chemistryCatalysisEngineeringPolymerBiochemistryReceptorComposite materialNanocluster Synthesis and ApplicationsAdvanced Nanomaterials in CatalysisCatalytic Processes in Materials Science