Synthesis of M/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles (M: Cu, Ni, Co, Fe or Mn ions and BS: Bi12SiO20) as novel catalysts for the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide

Abstract

To now, the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) utilizing M/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles as catalysts has not yet been reported. In this work, M/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles prepared by a simple two-step process, in which M/BS catalysts (M: Cu, Ni, Co, Fe or Mn ions and BS: Bi12SiO20) synthesized by ultrasonic-assisted hydrothermal method, and then utilized to prepare M/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles by a one-step thermal reduction route utilizing a sodium citrate. The as-prepared M/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles characterized by different techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to illustrate their structural, surface, and morphological properties, respectively. It was observed that a sharp decrement in specific surface area from 50.6 m2 g−1 for Co/BS to 6.6 m2 g−1 for Co/BS@Ag and from 74.6 m2 g−1 for Mn/BS to 18.4 m2 g−1 for Mn/BS@Ag. Noteworthy, the catalytic activities of the as-prepared Cu/BS@Ag, Fe/BS@Ag, Ni/BS@Ag, Co/BS@Ag and Mn/BS@Ag core-shell nanoparticles found to be 33.3%, 39.1%, 62.9%, 96.2% and 99.1%, respectively. Additionally, the highest active core-shell nanoparticle exhibited higher stability in comparison to the catalyst without Ag coating.