Rapid and facile synthesis of Au nanoparticle-decorated porous MOFs for the efficient reduction of 4-nitrophenol

The reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) with less toxicity and easier biodegradable is a promising strategy for industrial wastewater treatment. Herein, we developed a rapid and facile method for loading gold nanoparticles into the surface of NH2-MIL-101(Fe) (the carrier MOFs) obtained Au@NH2-MIL-101 (Fe) with great structural stability and superior catalytic activity. The as-prepared Au@NH2-MIL-101(Fe) nanoparticles can absolutely reduce 0.1 mM 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol in 20 s. The well-dispersed Au NPs on interface of NH2-MIL-101(Fe) provided highly dense active sites and the stable mesoporous structure of the carrier MOFs made the substrate 4-NP closer to the active center, leading to the improvement of the catalytic reduction efficiency. In addition, the composite membranes obtained from Au@NH2-MIL-101(Fe)-60 could treat for high concentration of 4-NP (2 g/L). This kind of nanoparticles not only lays the foundation for the development of novel catalysts, but also provides a practical and efficient method for industrial 4-NP wastewater treatment.

Automated summary

In this study, a rapid and facile method was developed to prepare Au@NH2-MIL-101(Fe) nanoparticles with great structural stability and superior catalytic activity for the efficient reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol. The composite membranes also exhibited excellent performance in treating high concentration 4-NP wastewater.