The photochemical effects of visible light on K2[PtCl4] hydrolysis and the synthesis of Pt nano catalysts

The hydrolysis of K2[PtCl4] under visible light, the equilibrium, morphology, and size of Pt NPs combined with CDs, the valence states of Pt element and the bonding of Pt NPs with CDs, the influence of different kinds of cyclodextrin (α, β, γ-CDs), the acidity of the solution, and the visible light color on the catalytic ability of Pt NPs were all researched by typical approaches. All results prove visible light irradiation is effectively playing a key role in the reaction process to form Pt NPs in a very narrow size distribution. pH = 9, β-CDs, and purple visible light are the optimized reaction conditions. The Pt-CDs present a high rate constant of 0.88 min−1 in the catalytic reduction of 4-NP. This research is beneficial for expanding photochemical approaches from ultraviolet light to visible light, which is more of green chemistry, low cost, and facile.