Carbonization of Co-BDC MOF results in magnetic C@Co nanoparticles that catalyze the reduction of methyl orange and 4-nitrophenol in water

Abstract

Herein we report a simple, facile and green technique for the preparation of magnetic cobalt nanoparticles (NPs) embedded on porous carbon (C@Co) nanocatalyst using MOFs template and explored for the catalytic reduction of Methyl orange (MO) and 4-Nitrophenol (4-NP). The morphology, structure and composition of the nanocatalyst were characterized by using Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM) techniques. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of metallic Co NPs as well as their high crystalline structure. TEM analysis revealed that all the Co NPs are wrapped and protected by the porous carbon matrix. Catalytic studies revealed that the prepared magnetic C@Co nanocatalyst could catalyze the reduction of MO and 4-NP in 2 min effectively. Furthermore, the nanocatalyst showed an outstanding reusability and recyclability characteristics that remained unchanged even after several cycles. Consequently, this research offers a highly active, recyclable and magnetically isolable nanocatalyst, which can be utilized for many catalytic industrial processes. In this regard, the magnetic C@Co nanocatalyst could be a potential candidate for the wastewater treatment.