A study of the palladium size effect on the direct synthesis of hydrogen peroxide from hydrogen and oxygen using highly uniform palladium nanoparticles supported on carbon

Abstract

Highly monodisperse carbon-supported palladium nanoparticles with controllable size (3 am, 6.5 nm, 9.5 nm) were prepared using a simple colloidal method, and the size dependence of the catalytic performance for the direct synthesis of hydrogen peroxide from hydrogen and oxygen was studied. Smaller-sized supported palladium nanoparticles showed both higher conversion of hydrogen and selectivity for hydrogen peroxide, compared to larger-sized supported particles. Among the catalysts tested, 3-nm Pd nanoparticles supported on carbon showed the highest yield for hydrogen peroxide because of the small size and high crystallinity.