A double-shelled yolk-like structure as an ideal magnetic support of tiny gold nanoparticles for nitrophenol reduction

A facile method is proposed to fabricate yolk-shell microspheres consisting of a movable silica core, a multifunctional double-layered shell, and plenty of tiny gold nanoparticles (Au NPs, similar to 2 nm) confined within the interior cavity and the mesoporous shell. The presented strategy involves the one-step coating of a Fe3O4/carbon double-layered shell, the partial etching of the silica cores and the in situ immobilization of Au NPs. The inner Fe3O4 layer of the double-layered shell endows the composites with superparamagnetism and thereby simplifies the introduction procedure of a magnetic component. The outer carbon layer not only protects the Fe3O4 layer from outside harsh conditions but also provides additional adsorption sites for Au NPs besides the interior space. The large number of catalytic active sites together with the advantages of the yolk-shell architecture make the nanocomposite a perfect catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol in the presence of NaBH4 (TOF value is 17.4 min(-1)). Moreover, the synthesized catalyst can be easily recovered and reused for at least nine cycles due to its magnetically separable feature and good stability. These confirm that the as-prepared yolk-like nanocomposites are promising candidates for catalytic application.