Carbon nitride nanosheets decorated with WO3 nanorods: Ultrasonic-assisted facile synthesis and catalytic application in the green manufacture of dialdehydes

Carbon nitride nanosheets decorated with WO3 nanorods (WO3/g-C3N4) were fabricated via ultrasonic-assisted dispersion and conventional incipient wetness impregnation method. It is found that ultrasonic promoted the formation of g-C-3 N-4 nanosheets efficiently. The promotion effect in the structural evolution and catalytic performance for the rod-like structure of WO3 caused by g-C3N4 nanosheets were well studied. For the first time, the novel WO3/g-C3N4 nanocomposites were used as efficient catalysts in the green process of dialdehydes from the selective oxidation of cycloalkene oxides using H2O2 as a clean oxidant, owing to the high dispersion of active sites and the strong interaction between cycloalkene oxides and the NH or NH2 groups on the surface of g-C3N4 sheets. Here, C-3 N-4 nanosheets are considered as the catalyst support and co-catalyst as well. The novel nanocomposites are very stable and can be reused for five times without obvious loss of catalytic activity. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved.