Gold@silica catalyst: Porosity of silica shells switches catalytic reactions

Abstract

Gold nanoparticles in the cores coated by non-porous silica shells (Au@nSiO2) and by porous silica shells (Au@pSiO2) were synthesized and used to catalyze the reduction and oxidation reactions to understand the influence of the structure of silica shells on their catalytic activity. Au@pSiO2 nanoparticles well catalyze the reduction and oxidation reactions while Au@pSiO2 nanoparticles are inactive for those reactions. The characterizations combining with catalytic reactions reveal that the porosity of silica shells is responsible for catalytic activity.