Scalable synthesis of palladium nanoparticle catalysts by atomic layer deposition

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) was used to produce Pd/Al₂O₃ catalysts using sequential exposures of Pd(II) hexafluoroacetylacetonate and formalin at 200 °C in a fluidized bed reactor. The ALD-prepared Pd/alumina catalysts were characterized by various methods including hydrogen chemisorption, XPS, and TEM, and compared with a commercially available 1 wt% Pd/alumina catalyst, which was also characterized. The content of Pd on alumina support and the size of Pd nanoparticles can be controlled by the number of ALD-coating cycles and the dose time of the Pd precursor. One layer of organic component from the Pd precursor remained on the Pd particle surface. The ALD 0.9 wt% Pd/alumina had greater active metal surface area and percent metal dispersion than the commercial 1 wt% Pd/alumina catalyst. The ALD and commercial catalysts were subjected to catalytic testing to determine their relative activities for glucose oxidation to gluconic acid in aqueous solution. The ALD 0.9 wt% Pd/alumina catalyst had comparable activity as compared to the commercial 1 wt% Pd catalyst. No noticeable amount of Pd leaching was observed for the ALD-prepared catalysts during the vigorously stirred reaction.