Green synthesis of highly dispersed Ag nanoparticles on polydopamine-functionalized graphene oxide and their high catalytic reduction reaction

• Published in: Microporous and mesoporous materials 2021-02, Vol.314, p.110861, Article 110861
• Main Author: Özgür, Derya Öncel
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 4- Nitrophenol (4-NP); Catalytic reduction reaction; Reduced graphene oxide (rGO); Self-polymerization of polydopamine (PDOP); Silver-based catalyst (Ag NPs)
• ISSN: 1387-1811; 1873-3093
• DOI: 10.1016/j.micromeso.2020.110861

Herein, we introduce a tailored mussel-inspired concept to facilitate the sustainable immobilization of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), which are accepted for the effectiveness in controlling the silver nanoparticle density and morphology onto the surface of the graphene oxide sheets (GO). Immobilization of Ag NPs on polydopamine (PDOP) functionalized GO is performed via the self-polymerization of dopamine by a facile in situ reduction method. The catalytic ability of the as-synthesized Ag@PDOP-rGO catalyst was searched for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) as a class of widespread toxic organic pollutant. The dopamine-mediated graphene hybrid with Ag NPs exhibited excellent catalytic reduction activities due to promoting the electron transfer and the dispersion of small-sized silver nanoparticles imposed upon the surface of graphene. The resulting hybrid exhibited 15 times higher catalytic activity than that of the graphene/silver hybrid without any modification. [Display omitted] •The Ag@PDOP-rGO was produced via a facile and green approach by self-polymerization of dopamine•A bio-inspired polydopamine assembling provided an universal platform for in situ formed reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites•Polydopamine helped reduce both graphene oxide and silver salt.•Silver nanoparticles were dispersively coated on the surface of graphene•Ag@PDOP-rGO presented superior catalytic performance for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol.