Synthesis of Nanosized Pd/CNT Catalyst by m-Chloroperbenzoic Acid Oxidation Method and Catalytic Hydrogenation Reaction

Abstract

Palladium nanoparticles (4-10 nm) were deposited outside multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) by m-chloroperbenzoic acid (MCPBA) oxidation method using an aqueous solution containing a palladium salt. The MCPBA oxidation method was extremely efficient as palladium particle located on the outer surface of the tubes was observed. The dispersion and structure of the palladium in the synthesized Pd/CNT catalyst determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The catalyst was tested for the selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde by gas chromatography. The carbon nanotubes based catalyst exhibits along with a high catalytic activity an extremely high selectivity towards the C=C bond hydrogenation.