Catalytic Activity of Cellulose Acetate Butyrate/TiO2-Au Nanocomposite Film Prepared by Laser Ablation for 2-Nitrophenol Reduction

Metal and metal oxides nanoparticles (NPs) supported on polymer nanocomposites have recently received significant attention due to their valuable applications in catalysis. In this work, cellulose acetate butyrate/TiO2 (CAB/TiO2) and CAB/TiO2/Au nanocomposite films were fabricated via a nanosecond pulsed laser ablation method in liquid. The obtained nanocomposites were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). These techniques confirmed the formation of CAB/TiO2 and CAB/TiO2/Au nanocomposites. The catalytic performance of the fabricated nanocomposites was evaluated in the reduction of 2-nitrophenol (2-NP) to 2-aminophenol in the presence of sodium borohydride (NaBH4) as a reducing agent and quantitively was monitored by UV-Vis spectroscopy. The obtained results showed an excellent catalytic activity of the CAB/TiO2/Au nanocomposites, as 8 mg of the catalyst load resulted in similar to 100% conversion within a reaction time of 16 min. The reduction reaction of 2-NP follows the pseudo-first-order model, with rate constants of 0.0148, 0.0299, and 0.803 min(-1) for 1 mg, 4 mg, and 8 mg catalysts loadings respectively. Moreover, the fabricated nanocomposites showed high stability and reusability, as it has been reused for the reduction of 2-NP up to 5 cycles without significant loss in catalytic activity.

Automated summary

Metal and metal oxides nanoparticles supported on polymer nanocomposites were fabricated and characterized. The catalytic performance of the nanocomposites in the reduction of 2-nitrophenol was evaluated, demonstrating excellent activity and stability of CAB/TiO2/Au nanocomposites.