Synthesis of Supported Ultrafine Non-noble Subnanometer-Scale Metal Particles Derived from Metal-Organic Frameworks as Highly Efficient Heterogeneous Catalysts.

The properties of supported non-noble metal particles with a size of less than 1 nm are unknown because their synthesis is a challenge. A strategy has now been created to immobilize ultrafine non-noble metal particles on supports using metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as metal precursors. Ni/SiO₂ and Co/SiO₂ catalysts were synthesized with an average metal particle size of 0.9 nm. The metal nanoparticles were immobilized uniformly on the support with a metal loading of about 20 wt %. Interestingly, the ultrafine non-noble metal particles exhibited very high activity for liquid-phase hydrogenation of benzene to cyclohexane even at 80 °C, while Ni/SiO₂ with larger Ni particles fabricated by a conventional method was not active under the same conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]