On the High Sensitivity of the Electronic States of 1 nm Gold Particles to Pretreatments and Modifiers

Effect of the Metal Deposition Order on Structural, Electronic and Catalytic Properties of TiO2-Supported Bimetallic Au-Ag Catalysts in 1-Octanol Selective Oxidation

Au and Ag were deposited on TiO2 modified with Ce, La, Fe or Mg in order to obtain bimetallic catalysts to be used for liquid-phase oxidation of 1-octanol. The effects of the deposition order of gold and silver, and the nature of the support modifying additives and redox pretreatments on the catalytic properties of the bimetallic Au-Ag catalysts were studied. Catalysts were characterized by low-temperature nitrogen adsorption–desorption, energy dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. It was found that pretreatments with hydrogen and oxygen at 300 °C significantly decreased the activity of AuAg catalysts (silver was deposited first) and had little effect on the catalytic properties of AgAu samples (gold was deposited first). The density functional theory method demonstrated that the adsorption energy of 1-octanol increased for all positively charged AuxAgyq (x + y = 10, with a charge of q = 0 or +1) clusters compared with the neutral counterparts. Lanthanum oxide was a very effective promoter for both monometallic and bimetallic gold and silver catalysts in the studied process.

Effect of TAT-DOX-PEG irradiated gold nanoparticles conjugates on human osteosarcoma cells

The paper aims to investigate the cytotoxic effect on tumor cells of irradiated AuNPs in green light and subsequently functionalized with HS-PEG-NH2. The toxicity level of gold conjugates after their functionalization with DOX and TAT peptide was also evaluated. The AuNPs were prepared using the modified Turkevich method and exposed to visible light at a wavelength of 520 nm prior their PEGylation. The optical properties were analyzed by UV-vis spectroscopy, the surface modification was investigated using FTIR and XPS spectroscopies and their sizes and morphologies were evaluated by TEM and DLS techniques. DOX and TAT peptide were linked to the surface of PEGylated AuNPs by reacting their amino groups with glycidyloxypropyl of PEGylated DOX or TAT conjugates under mild conditions at room temperature and in the presence of ethanol as catalyst. The conjugates containing DOX or DOX and TAT have been characterized by fluorescence and FTIR techniques. The changes of electrochemical features were observed using cyclic voltammetry, suggesting a better stability of irradiated nanoparticles. By mass spectrometry it was confirmed that the compounds of interest were obtained. The cell viability test showed that irradiated and non-irradiated nanoparticles coated with PEG are not toxic in normal cells. Tumor cell viability analysis showed that the PEGylated nanoparticles modified with DOX and TAT peptide were more effective than pristine DOX, indicating cytotoxicity up to 10% higher than non-irradiated ones.

Special Issue: Coinage Metal (Copper, Silver, and Gold) Catalysis

The subject of catalysis by coinage metals (copper, silver, and gold) comes up increasingly day-by-day. This Special Issue aims to cover the numerous aspects of the use of these metals as catalysts for several reactions. It deals with synthesis and characterization of copper, silver and gold based catalysis, their characterization and use, both for heterogeneous and homogeneous catalysis, and some of their potential applications.

Causes of Activation and Deactivation of Modified Nanogold Catalysts during Prolonged Storage and Redox Treatments

The catalytic properties of modified Au/TiO₂ catalysts for low-temperature CO oxidation are affected by deactivation and reactivation after long-term storage and by redox treatments. The effect of these phenomena on the catalysts was studied by HRTEM, BET, SEM, FTIR CO, XPS and H₂ TPR methods. The main cause for the deactivation and reactivation of catalytic properties is the variation in the electronic state of the supported gold, mainly, the proportion of singly charged ions Au⁺. The most active samples are those with the highest proportion of singly charged gold ions, while catalysts with a high content of trivalent gold ions are inactive at low-temperatures. Active states of gold, resistant to changes caused by the reaction process and storage conditions, can be stabilized by modification of the titanium oxide support with transition metals oxides. The catalyst modified with lanthanum oxide shows the highest stability and activity.