Novel synthesis and characterization of Fe3O4@silica-palladium nanocatalyst: A highly active and reusable heterogeneous catalyst for Heck cross-coupling reactions

A novel method for synthesis of palladium nanocatalyst on Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles was introduced. For this purpose, the surface of magnetic nanoparticles was modified with two different precursors of silica which produced amine and vinyl functional groups on the surface of magnetic nanoparticles. The palladium nanocatalysts were formed on silica shell by direct contact of modified magnetic nanoparticles with the palladium precursor without special requirement of any additional chemical reducer. The nanocatalysts were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). The catalytic activity of supported palladium nanocatalysts was investigated in Heck coupling reactions of a series of aryl halides and olefins. Under appropriate conditions, all reactions afforded the desired products in relatively excellent yields. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.