Synthesis of Carbon-Encapsulated Cu-Ag Dimetallic Nanoparticles and Their Recyclable Superior Catalytic Activity towards 4-Nitrophenol Reduction

A facile one-pot route has been developed for the synthesis of carbon-encapsulated Cu-Ag dimetallic nanoparticles (C-CuAg NPs). The synthesis was conducted using AgNO3 and Cu(NO3)(2) as metal precursors and ascorbic acid as the reduction agent and carbon source. The catalytic activities of the C-CuAg NPs for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) with NaBH4 were tracked by UV/Vis spectroscopy, which demonstrates that the as-prepared C-CuAg NPs exhibit significantly enhanced catalytic activity compared with carbon-encapsulated Cu nanoparticles (C-CuNPs) and carbon-encapsulated Ag nanoparticles (C-Ag NPs). Notably, the catalysts are stable, and there is a high conversion efficiency for at least ten successive cycles. Considering the green facile preparation procedure and high catalytic activity, the prepared C-CuAg NPs hold great promise as highly efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly catalysts for industrial applications.