In Situ Catalytic Activity of CuO Nanosheets Synthesized from a Surfactant-Lamellar Template
CuO nanosheets approximately 0.8 nm thick were synthesized under ambient conditions within a few hours using a surfactant lamellar mesophase as a soft template. In aqueous media, metal ions and anionic surfactants form a lamellar mesophase. In the lamellar layers, metal ions can crystallize
without structural collapse. Highly ordered CuO nanosheet/surfactant lamellar layers formed in an aqueous solution can be easily delaminated by washing with water. The use of the delaminated CuO nanosheet catalyst instead of traditional metallic catalysts resulted in a reduction reaction of
4-nitrophenol with NaBH4 that obeyed zero-order kinetics. This indicates in situ conversion of CuO to Cu in the reaction solution. Cu in situ reduced by BH−
4 acted as a catalyst relaying electrons for the reduction of 4-NP. The catalytic
reaction was investigated by UV-vis spectroscopy, and the reduction and crystalline structures of the nanosheets were analyzed by UV-vis spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. These results indicate CuO nanosheets to be an attractive alternative to metal catalysts in reactions involving hydrogen.
Keywords: CATALYSIS; CUPRIC OXIDE; LAMELLAR; NANOSHEET
Document Type: Research Article
Publication date: 01 May 2011
- Journal for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (JNN) is an international and multidisciplinary peer-reviewed journal with a wide-ranging coverage, consolidating research activities in all areas of nanoscience and nanotechnology into a single and unique reference source. JNN is the first cross-disciplinary journal to publish original full research articles, rapid communications of important new scientific and technological findings, timely state-of-the-art reviews with author's photo and short biography, and current research news encompassing the fundamental and applied research in all disciplines of science, engineering and medicine.
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