A strategy for preparing efficient Ag/p-BNNS nanocatalyst with a synergistic effect between Ag and p-BNNS

Porous hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (p-BNNS) have demonstrated advantages in hydrogen storage, water purification and catalyst support. Boron nitride (BN) is generally considered chemically inert, but functionalized h-BN by physical or chemical methods breed new properties and applications and can catalyze some reactions. Herein, we developed a strategy to prepare a Ag/p-BNNS nanocatalyst via in-situ thermal decomposition of AgNO3 at 400 degrees C in air (Ag/p-BNNS-Air). Results suggested that Ag nanoparticles (NPs) with a diameter of ca. 2.41 nm can be evenly anchored and dispersed on the p-BNNS and the new B-O-Ag chemical bonds were formed between Ag NPs and the boron dangling bonds at the edges of p-BNNS. Ag/p-BNNS-Air exhibits 20-55 fold for catalytic performance enhancement compared with that of p-BNNS-Air and Ag/p-BNNS-N-2, which is attributed to the small-sized, uniformly dispersed Ag NPs and the synergistic effect between Ag and the B-O bonds of p-BNNS. Our results provide a new approach for the rational design and development of metal composites and open the way to a range of important applications of p-BNNS-based materials. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A strategy to prepare Ag/p-BNNS nanocatalyst was developed by in-situ thermal decomposition of AgNO3, resulting in Ag/p-BNNS-Air exhibiting significantly enhanced catalytic performance compared to other samples, attributed to the synergistic effect between Ag nanoparticles and B-O bonds of p-BNNS.