One-pot solvothermal method to synthesize platinum/W18O49 ultrafine nanowires and their catalytic performance

Abstract

A simple solvothermal method was developed to prepare platinum/W₁₈O₄₉ ultrafine nanowires (<5 nm in diameter) through hydrolysis of WCl₆ in ethanol-water solution in the presence of poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) capping with Pt nanoparticles, and a series of Pt/W₁₈O₄₉ nanocomposites were obtained. These Pt/W₁₈O₄₉ composites were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectra, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. It was demonstrated that PVP not only directed the formation of W₁₈O₄₉ nanowires, but also transferred the metal particles onto the oxide support without any size change. Due to the relatively strong interaction between Pt nanoparticles and the W₁₈O₄₉ nanowires, the as-prepared Pt/W₁₈O₄₉ composites exhibited blue shift in UV emission compared to the W₁₈O₄₉ nanowires, and displayed high activity and excellent stability for hydrogenation of p-chloronitrobenzene to p-chloroaniline with a selectivity of 99.7%.