Sintering Ag Nanoclusters on TiO Nanoparticles as an Efficient Catalyst for Nitroarene Reduction.

Polydispersed Ag species-modified TiO samples with abundant oxygen vacancies were successfully prepared through the calcination of atomically precise Ag nanocluster-loaded TiO at an optimal temperature under a nitrogen atmosphere. The ligands of the Ag nanoclusters are removed by extracting lattice oxygen from TiO during the calcination, leading to the formation of CO, SO, and HO vapor. This process simultaneously induces Ag species sintering on the surface of TiO. The resulting nanocomposites exhibited excellent catalytic activity for the reduction of nitroarenes with NaBH as the reductant. This is attributed to the produced Ag species on the oxygen-deficient TiO, which act as active centers for the catalytic process.