Catalytic reduction using Pd-based nanomaterials has emerged as a promising technology to treat a suite of priority waterborne contaminants.  Compared with conventional techniques, catalysis follows green chemistry principles by removing the target contaminants without producing unexpected byproducts or generating a secondary waste stream. However, low activity with some contaminants (e.g. N-nitrosamines, chlorate) and difficulty of recovery and reuse of nanomaterials are two major challenges to widespread technology adoption. To address this issue, a core-shell structured Pd nanocatalyst was synthesized consisting of a magnetic core decorated with preformed metallic Pd(0) nanoparticles that are further encapsulated within a mesoporous silica shell. The shape and size of the Pd nanoparticles were tuned to optimize the activity of the catalyst. Results suggest that the presence of the mesoporous shell effectively protected the metallic Pd(0) nanoparticles from leaching and sintering, and significantly enhanced the catalytic activity via an adsorption-promoted process. This presentation will focus on preparation and characterization of the catalyst, and evaluation of the catalytic activity for removing a number of aquatic micropollutants at various water matrices that are relevant to water treatment application.

Design of Pd-based core-shell structured hydrogenation catalyst with enhanced activity

248th National Meeting (2014)

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