Preparation of Au nanoparticles on a magnetically responsive support via pyrolysis of a Prussian blue composite

Baiyu Ren; Ahmad Esmaielzadeh Kandjani; Miao Chen; Matthew R Field; Daniel K Oppedisano; Suresh K Bhargava; Lathe A Jones

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2019.01.027

Preparation of Au nanoparticles on a magnetically responsive support via pyrolysis of a Prussian blue composite

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2019 Mar 22:540:563-571. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2019.01.027. Epub 2019 Jan 8.

Authors

Baiyu Ren¹, Ahmad Esmaielzadeh Kandjani¹, Miao Chen², Matthew R Field³, Daniel K Oppedisano¹, Suresh K Bhargava⁴, Lathe A Jones⁵

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Advanced Materials and Industrial Chemistry (CAMIC), School of Science, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia.
² Centre for Advanced Materials and Industrial Chemistry (CAMIC), School of Science, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia; CSIRO Mineral Resources, Clayton, VIC 3169, Australia.
³ RMIT Microscopy & Microanalysis Facility, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia.
⁴ Centre for Advanced Materials and Industrial Chemistry (CAMIC), School of Science, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia. Electronic address: suresh.bhargava@rmit.edu.au.
⁵ Centre for Advanced Materials and Industrial Chemistry (CAMIC), School of Science, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia. Electronic address: lathe.jones@rmit.edu.au.

PMID: 30677609
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2019.01.027

Abstract

A strategy is described for the direct preparation of Au nanoparticles (AuNPs) on a Fe-based support, coated with porous carbon (PC), via pyrolysis of an AuCN functionalised Prussian Blue (PB) metal organic framework (MOF). The composite starting material was prepared with an even distribution of AuCN on the surface via galvanic exchange of PB with a gold salt in solution. The resulting structures after pyrolysis were shown to be active Au-based nanomaterials for model applications including catalysis (4-nitrophenol reduction) and electroanalysis (arsenic (III) detection), suggesting broad application where Au nanoparticles are required at a liquid-solid interface. The Fe based support was seen to consist of Fe, Fe₃C and Fe₄C phases, and the carbon coating increased the stability and improved the conductivity of the materials. The temperature of pyrolysis was seen to affect the activity of the supported nanoparticles, with an increased Au surface area obtained at the higher pyrolysis temperature (650 °C) tested. A general strategy is thus confirmed for preparation of noble metal nanoparticles evenly distributed on a magnetic support, allowing easy separation of catalysts from products in heterogeneous applications.

Keywords: Arsenic detection; Metal organic framework; Porous carbon; Prussian blue.