NiO as a peculiar support for metal nanoparticles in polyols oxidation

The peculiar influence of a NiO support was studied by preparing gold catalysts supported on NiO1-x-TiO2 (x) mixed oxides. PVA protected Au nanoparticles showed high activity when supported on NiO for the selective oxidation of glycerol and ethane-1,2-diol. A detailed characterization of the resulting Au catalysts revealed a preferential deposition of the metal nanoparticles on the NiO phase. However, the activity of Au on NiO1-x-TiO2 (x) decreased with respect to pure NiO and the selectivity evolved with changes in the support.