PVP-PS supported ultra-small Pd nanoparticles for the room temperature reduction of 4-nitrophenol

A facile method for the synthesis of ultra-small palladium (Pd) nanoparticles by polyol method is described. Pd nanoparticles are stabilized/caped by poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) and PVP capped Pd nanoparticles encapsulated by polystyrene. The resulting nanocatalyst was investigated for catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol under ambient conditions. Optimized reactions conditions showed that 20 mg of the catalyst and 1.0 M NaBH4 are the ideal conditions to achieve the best activity.