Pt nanoparticles encapsulated on V2O5 nanosheets carriers as efficient catalysts for promoted aerobic oxidative desulfurization performance

Abstract Platinum group metals (PGMs) usually exhibit promising aerobic catalytic abilities, providing a green and feasible oxidative desulfurization method. However, often, the PGM nanoparticles (NPs) get leached, and the catalysts are deactivated. In this work, Pt NPs with particle sizes of approximately 4–5 nm were encapsulated effectively and uniformly on the surface of vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) nanosheets (with thicknesses of approximately six atomic layers) through strong metal-support interactions. The synthesized catalysts promote catalytic aerobic oxidation reactions, realizing deep desulfurization (99.1%, l 5 μg g−1) under atmospheric pressure and 110 dC reaction temperature. Remarkable degrees of sulfur removal could be achieved for oils with different initial S-concentrations and substrates. Additionally, the as-prepared catalysts could be recycled for reuse at least seven times.