Experimental evidence for the interface interaction in Ag/C60 nanocomposite catalyst and its crucial influence on catalytic performance

New model catalysts are important for studying the interface interaction and their influence on the catalytic performance. in this paper, a novel Ag/C-60 nanocomposite catalyst (Ag/C-60 NCC) has been designed, prepared, and applied for the first time in the hydrogenation of aromatic nitro compounds. A new band at 1100 cm(-1) appears in the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra of the Ag/C-60 NCC, and the peak of the A. (2) mode Of C-60 shifts clearly from 1468 to 1464 cm(-1) in the Raman spectrum. X-ray photoelectron (XPS) spectrum of Ag 3d electron can be curve fitted into two pairs of peaks, corresponding to neutral Ag and Ag+, and the half-peak breadth is also broadened. Ag/C-60 NCC exhibits excellent activity and selectivity in the hydrogenation of chloronitrobenzenes and nitrobenzaldehydes, whereas Ag nanocrystals (NCs), the mixture of Ag NCs, and C-60 NCs do worse. These results evidence the presence of the charge transfer from Ag to C-60 and clearly indicate the catalytic performance's dependence on the interface interaction between Ag NCs and support C-60 NCs.