In situ synthesis of Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles on amine-functionalized SiO2 for the aqueous-phase hydrodechlorination of chlorobenzene

Highly dispersed Au-Pd nanoparticles (NPs) with an average size of similar to 3.0 nm were synthesized by in situ reduction of HAuCl4 and PdCl2 on an amine-functionalized SiO2 support. The structural and electronic properties of the Au-Pd NPs were investigated systematically using STEM-EDX, XRD, UV-vis and XPS spectroscopy. It is demonstrated that the composition of the Au-Pd NPs can be tuned by varying the ratio of Au- to Pd-containing salt in solution. In the aqueous-phase hydrodechlorination of chlorobenzene, the Au-Pd NPs showed a much higher activity and chlorine resistance than the monometallic Au and Pd counterparts. The effects of base and solvent on the activity over the supported Au-Pd NPs were also investigated.