High catalytic activity of Rh nanoparticles generated from cobaltocene and RhCl3 in aqueous solution

Abstract

Rh compounds including Rh nanoparticles are among the most active catalysts for many reactions. Catalytically very reactive small Rh nanoparticles have been generated upon reduction of aqueous RhCl₃ by cobaltocene, characterized, and shown to be very efficient for the test nitrophenol reduction (compared to other metal NPs), generation of hydrogen from ammonia borane hydrolysis, transfer hydrogenation, and benzene hydrogenation. This useful concept of cobalticinium chloride-stabilized NP catalysts could potentially be efficiently applicable to a variety of other aqueous catalytic systems.