Engineering the interface of Au nanocatalysts with FeO x for enhanced selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde

Engineering the interface plays a vital role in tuning the catalytic properties of supported metal nanocatalysts. Herein the 0.73%Au-4.13%FeOx@SBA-15 catalyst was constructed with SBA-15 as support and FeOx as modifier by interface engineering. It exhibited better catalytic activity than 0.71%Au/SiO2, 0.69%Au@SBA-15 and 0.71%Au/bulk-FeOx under identical conditions as well as higher selectivity towards cinnamyl alcohol for selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde. It was found that the introduction of FeOx fabricated the interfacial area between Au and FeOx for H2 dissociation and consequently led to higher catalytic activity of 0.73%Au-4.13%FeOx@SBA-15. Meanwhile, both the channel of the SBA-15 support and the presence of small-sized FeOx promoted the selectivity for hydrogenation of C = O bond. It demonstrated for the first time that the interface engineering provided an efficient and facile avenue to design Au catalysts of excellent performances for selective hydrogenations.