Oxidation of styrene using TiO2-graphene oxide composite as solid heterogeneous catalyst with hydroperoxide as oxidant

Kinetic Study of Styrene Oxidation over Titania Catalyst Supported on Sulfonated Fish Bone-derived Carbon

The kinetic evaluation of titania supported sulfonated fish bone-derived carbon (TiO2/SFBC) as a catalyst in styrene oxidation by aqueous hydrogen peroxide was carried out. The catalysts were prepared by carbonation of fishbone powder at varying temperatures 500, 600 and 700 °C, respectively for 2 h, followed by sulfonation with sulfuric acid (1M) for 24 h and impregnated by varied titania concentration 500, 1000 and 1500 µmol. The physical properties of catalysts were characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope-Energy Dispersive X-Ray (SEM-EDX) and the nitrogen adsorption-desorption analysis. The catalytic activity result showed that TiO2/SFBC can be used as a potential catalyst in styrene oxidation. Worth noting that the sulfonation process has not only transformed the TiO2/FBC particulates (without sulfonation) to cuboid-shaped TiO2/SFBC (with sulfonation) but also contributed to the high selectivity of benzaldehyde. On the other hand, carbonization at different temperatures has an indistinct effect on catalytic performance due to their similar surface areas. The styrene conversion rate responded positively with the increasing amount of titania in the functionalized composites. The styrene oxidation by aqueous H2O2 unraveled the first-order reaction with the activation energy of ⁓63.5 kJ. Copyright © 2022 by Authors, Published by BCREC Group. This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). 

New insights on the enhanced non-hydroxyl radical contribution under copper promoted TiO2/GO for the photodegradation of tetracycline hydrochloride

TiO₂/graphene oxide (GO) as photocatalyst in the photo-degradation of multitudinous pollutants has been extensively studied. But its low photocatalytic efficiency is attributed to the high band gap energy which lead to low light utilization. Cu-TiO₂/GO was synthesized via the impregnation methods to enhance the catalytic performance. The Cu-TiO₂/GO reaction rate constant for photo-degradation of pollutants (tetracycline hydrochloride, TC) was about 1.4 times that of TiO₂/GO. In 90 min, the removal ratio of Cu-TiO₂/GO for TC was 98%, and the maximum degradation ratio occurred at pH 5. After five cycles, the removal ratio of Cu-TiO₂/GO still exceeded 98%. UV-visible adsorption spectra of Cu-TiO₂/GO showed that its band gap was narrower than TiO₂/GO. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra test illustrated the generation rate of •O₂^- and •OH was higher in Cu-TiO₂/GO system than TiO₂/GO and TiO₂ system. The contribution sequence of oxidative species was •O₂^- > holes (h⁺) > •OH in both TiO₂/GO and Cu-TiO₂/GO system. Interestingly, the contribution of •OH in Cu-TiO₂/GO was less than that in TiO₂/GO during the photo-degradation process. This phenomenon was attributed to the better adsorption performance of Cu-TiO₂/GO which could reduce the accessibility of TC to •OH in liquid. The enhanced non‑hydroxyl radical contribution could be attributed to that the more other active species or sites on (nearby) the surface of Cu-TiO₂/GO generated after doping Cu. These results provide a new perspective for the tradition metal-doped conventional catalysts to enhance the removal of organic pollutants in the environment.

A facile synthesis methodology for preparation of Ag-Ni-reduced graphene oxide: a magnetically separable versatile nanocatalyst for multiple organic reactions and density functional study of its electronic structures

Here, we report a simple 'in situ' co-precipitation reduction synthesis method for the preparation of nanocatalysts composed of Ag, Ni nanoparticles, and reduced graphene oxide (RGO). First-principles calculations based on Density Functional Theory (DFT) were performed to obtain the electronic structures and properties of Ag-Ni-graphene superlattice and to understand the interfacial interactions which exist at the interface between Ag, Ni, and graphene. The catalytic performance of the synthesized catalysts (Ag x Ni(1-x)) y RGO(100-y) were evaluated for four reactions (i) reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) in the presence of excess NaBH4 in aqueous medium, (ii) A3 coupling reaction for the synthesis of propargylamines, (iii) epoxidation of styrene, and (iv) 'Click reaction' for the synthesis of 1,2,3-triazole derivatives. For all of these reactions the catalyst composed of Ag, Ni, and RGO, exhibited significantly higher catalytic activity than that of pure Ag, Ni, and RGO. Moreover, an easy magnetic recovery of this catalyst from the reaction mixture after completion of the catalytic reactions and the good reusability of the recovered catalyst is also reported here. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time the demonstration of the versatile catalytic activity of (Ag x Ni(1-x)) y RGO(100-y) towards multiple reactions, and the DFT study of its electronic structure have been reported.

CeFe-Based Bead Nanocomposites as Catalysts for Oxidation of Ethylbenzene Reaction

Oxides with good catalytic performances and more selectivity to valuable chemicals attract numerous research interests for the oxidation of hydrocarbon fuels. Taking advantage of the nanocasting route, CeFe-based nanocomposites were prepared and characterized to achieve superior stability in the oxidation of cyclic compounds. Adding a third metal (Me = Ni2+, Mn2+/Mn3+ or Co2+/Co3+) to the CeFe-based oxide helped the formation of Ce3+/Ce4+, Fe2+/Fe3+ and active couples in the ternary nanocomposites. The solids having a spherical morphology and good textural properties enabled the formation of promising ternary oxide catalysts for the oxidation of ethylbenzene compared with those of binary and single monoxide nanocomposites. The close contact among the Ce3+/Ce4+ and Fe2+/Fe3+ pairs with Ni2+ species provided the formation of a highly stable CeFeNi catalyst with enhanced performance in the oxidation of cyclic compounds such as ethylbenzene, styrene and benzyl alcohol substrates.

Noble metal-free V2O5/g-C3N4 composites for selective oxidation of olefins using hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant

Vanadium pentoxide modified graphitic carbon nitride (V2O5/g-C3N4) composites were prepared through a method of wet impregnation and calcination. The obtained samples were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, photoluminescence, electron spin resonance and N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms. Oxidation of olefins was employed to evaluate the catalytic and photocatalytic activities of the prepared V2O5/g-C3N4 composites. Different weight ratios (1%, 2%, 3%, 4% and 5%) of V2O5 loaded composites were prepared and a 3% loaded composite was found to show optimal catalytic performance for the reaction. This noble metal-free catalyst showed excellent performance in the oxidation of styrene to benzaldehyde with high conversion (98.7%) and selectivity (88.4%) under visible light irradiation. A plausible mechanism was proposed for this oxidation reaction with hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant. Other styrene substrates were also selectively transformed to their corresponding aldehydes with high yields (up to 92%), using such a noble metal-free catalytic system.