Encapsulating Pd nanoparticles in double-shelled graphene@carbon hollow spheres for excellent chemical catalytic property.

Double-shelled hollow carbon spheres with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) as inner shell and carbon (C) layer as outer shell have been successfully designed and prepared. This tailor-making structure acts as an excellent capsule for encapsulating with ultrafine Pd nanoparticles (Pd NPs), which could effectively prevent Pd NPs from aggregation and leaching. As a result, the as-obtained RGO@Pd@C nanohybid exhibits superior and stable catalytic performance. With the aid of RGO@Pd@C, the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol with NaBH4 as reducing agent can be finished within only 30 s, even the content of Pd is as low as 0.28 wt%. As far as we know, RGO@Pd@C is one of the most effective catalyst for 4-NP reducing reaction up to now.