Cellulose supported bimetallic Fe-Cu nanoparticles: a magnetically recoverable nanocatalyst for quick reduction of nitroarenes to amines in water

摘要

In this study, an easy procedure for nanoparticle immobilization of bimetallic Fe-Cu on microcrystaline cellulose as an environmentally benign material is described. The prepared nanocomposite Fe-Cu@MCC was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, atomic absorption spectroscopy, vibrating sample magnetometer, thermogravimetric and zeta potential analyses. The cellulose nanocomposite was applied as a magnetically recoverable catalyst for the efficient and quick reduction of structurally diverse nitroarenes to arylamines with NaBH4. Reduction reactions were carried out in H2O within 5-14 min to afford the products in high to excellent yields. The heterogeneous nanocatalyst was readily isolated from the reaction mixture by an external magnet and reused 8 times without significant loss of its catalytic activity.