Multiple Silver Nanoparticles Anchored Hollow Mesoporous Silica Nanospheres by Polyacrylic Acid Aggregate Templating Approach for Catalytic Reduction of p-Nitrophenol

Anchoring metal cores inside porous shells can endow metal catalyst with high selectivity and stability. Herein, multiple silver nanoparticles were successfully anchored in hollow mesoporous silica nanospheres (Ag@HMSNs) through a facile one-pot method. Polyacrylic acid aggregates self-assembled in water/ethanol solvent were used as core templates and Ag nanoparticles captors, and hexadecyl trimethoxysilane (C16TMS) was used as the pore-making agent. The hollow cavity, encapsulated multiple Ag nanoparticles, and mesoporous silica shell of the Ag@HMSNs were confirmed by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and nitrogen sorption analysis. Just as expected, Ag nanoparticles (2-5 nm) were encapsulated in the cavity of hollow mesoporous silica nanospheres with the size of about 200 nm. The fabricated Ag@HMSNs showed excellent performance for catalytic reduction of p-nitrophenol (4-NP). Also, catalytic activity of the Ag@HMSNs for 4-NP reduction was increased with the addition amount of the pore-making agents and surface areas. The superior catalytic performance was attributed to the unique structural features of Ag@HMSNs architecture, in which the mesoporous shell provided readily accessible pathway for fast transport of reactants to the encapsulated Ag nanoparticles.