A facile approach of preparing nickel nanoparticles on porous silicon surface and its catalytic activities on reducing of nitroaromatics

A facile approach of preparing nickel nanoparticles (ni nps) on porous silicon (psi) surface and the catalysis towards reduction of nitroaromatics are depicted in this work in detail. when the psi chip was immersed in the mixture of 40 % ammonium fluoride and 0.02 m nickel sulfate solutions with volume ratio of 1:1 at 60°c for 15 min,a large number of ni nps were generated on psi surface,which exhibited high catalytic activities on reducing nitro groups of aromatics in the presence of sodium borohydride at ambient temperature. a suggested mechanism of ni nps generation on psi surface was put forward according to theoretical and experimental analyses. the resultant ni nps on psi surface were demonstrated with scanning electron microscopy and the reducing reactions are monitored with ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy.