One-pot solvothermal method to synthesize platinum/W18O49 ultrafine nanowires and their catalytic performance

A simple solvothermal method was developed to prepare platinum/W18O49 ultrafine nanowires (<5 nm in diameter) through hydrolysis of WCl6 in ethanol-water solution in the presence of poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) capping with Pt nanoparticles, and a series of Pt/W18O49 nanocomposites were obtained. These Pt/W18O49 composites were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectra, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. It was demonstrated that PVP not only directed the formation of W18O49 nanowires, but also transferred the metal particles onto the oxide support without any size change. Due to the relatively strong interaction between Pt nanoparticles and the W18O49 nanowires, the as-prepared Pt/W18O49 composites exhibited blue shift in UV emission compared to the W18O49 nanowires, and displayed high activity and excellent stability for hydrogenation of p-chloronitrobenzene to p-chloroaniline with a selectivity of 99.7%.