Nanoparticles of ZrPO4 for green catalytic applications.

Here we report the successful room temperature synthesis of zirconium phosphate nanoparticles (ZPNP) using the P123 tri-co-block polymer for the first time. The samples were characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, TPD, and BET and were employed for fixation of CO2 on aniline to produce pharmaceutically important acetanilide under mild reaction conditions (150 °C and 150 Psi CO2 pressure).

Synthesis of carbon embedded MFe2O4 (M = Ni, Zn and Co) nanoparticles as efficient hydrogenation catalysts.

Successful synthesis of stable MFe2O4 nanoparticles@C has been realized by applying the novel concept of using levulinic acid possessing carboxyl and carbonyl groups to facilitate the interaction with metal ions (M(2+) and Fe(3+)) and the carbon source (phloroglucinol) in the sol-gel polymerization method. All the samples have been characterized by XRD, SEM, FT-IR, TEM, HRTEM, ICP-AES, CHNS, and N2 adsorption-desorption, and were studied for their performance towards hydrogenation reaction of styrene. Out of three samples NiFe2O4 gave excellent selective hydrogenation activity of styrene to ethyl benzene (100% conversion and 100% selectivity). Optimal production of ethyl benzene over NiFe2O4 nanoparticles@C has been established at 80 °C reaction temperature after 24 h reaction time under 40 bar hydrogen pressure.

Synthesis of orderly nanoporous aluminophosphate and zirconium phosphate materials and their catalytic applications.

Amorphous alumino phosphate (AP) and zirconium phosphate (ZP) materials possessing an ordered nanoporosity have been successfully synthesized by a hydrothermal method using a P123 block co-polymer as the structure directing agent. The materials exhibited excellent catalytic activity towards selective alkylation of phenol with cyclohexanol, where AP showed as high as 100% selectivity to produce the industrially important O-alkylation product, while the corresponding ZP selectively produced a C-alkylation product (93% selectivity).

Facile synthesis of a sulfonated carbon-silica-meso composite and mesoporous silica.

In this study we report a novel and simple method for preparing a sulfonated carbon-silica-meso composite showing high acidity and porosity useful for transformation of bulky molecules, where glucose was used as a carbon source as well as a non-surfactant templating precursor and the resultant composite upon calcination yielded the mesoporous silica.