Palladium Supported on Mesoporous Alumina Catalyst for Selective Hydrogenation

Abstract

Colloidal metal nanoparticles are of great interest because of their use as catalysts, photocatalyst, adsorbent and sensors and their application in optical, electronic and magnetic devices. Capping agents are widely used in the synthesis of colloidal nano crystals for stabilizing the nanoparticles. The well dispersed Palladium nanoparticles (PdNP) supported on mesoporous γ-Al 2 O 3 were prepared by using capping agents namely PVA, PVP, PEG and MEG using tetrahydrofuran as solvent. The catalytic properties of Pd-nanoparticle on mesoporous γ-Al 2 O 3 were studied for hydrogenation model reaction. The alumina supported palladium nanoparticles were characterized by using instrumental techniques namely BET surface area, HR-TEM and XRD. HR-TEM studies shows that the average particle size of Pd metal in the fresh and spent catalyst was in the range from 5 to 10 nm. The catalyst could be efficiently recycled for three times without losing catalytic activity and selectivity.