Studies of the optical properties and catalytic capabilities of noble metal nanoparticles (NPs), such as gold (Au) and silver (Ag), have formed the basis for the very recent fast expansion of the field of green photocatalysis: photocatalysis utilizing visible and ultraviolet light, a major part of the solar spectrum.The reason for this growth is the recognition that the localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect of Au NPs and Ag NPs can couple the light flux to the conduction electrons of metal NPs, and the excited electrons and enhanced electric fields in close proximity to the NPs can contribute to converting the solar energy to chemical energy by photon-driven photocatalytic reactions. Previously the LSPR effect of noble metal NPs was utilized almost exclusively to improve the performance of semiconductor photocatalysts (for example, TiO 2 and Ag halides), but recently, a conceptual breakthrough was made: studies on light driven reactions catalysed by NPs of Au or Ag on photocatalytically inactive supports (insulating solids with a very wide band gap) have demonstrated that these materials are a class of efficient photocatalysts working by mechanisms distinct from those of semiconducting photocatalysts. There are several reasons for the significant photocatalytic activity of Au and Ag NPs. (1) The conduction electrons of the particles gain the irradiation energy, resulting in high energy electrons at the NP surface which is desirable for activating molecules on the particles for chemical reactions. (2) In such a photocatalysis system, both light harvesting and the catalysing reaction take place on the nanoparticle, and so charge transfer Sarina SarinaSarina Sarina received her B.Sc. degree from Inner Mongolia University in 2006 and M.Sc. degree from Inner Mongolia University in 2009. She is currently a PhD student at Science and Engineering Faculty, Queensland University of Technology, under the guidance of Prof. Huai Yong Zhu. Her research interests include new visible-light photocatalysts for fine organic synthesis, such as noble metal nanoparticles (and their alloy nanoparticles) and surface complex photocatalysts working by a radical mechanism and adsorbents for removal of radioactive ions from water for safe disposal.

The intrinsic catalytic activity of palladium (Pd) is significantly enhanced in gold (Au)-Pd alloy nanoparticles (NPs) under visible light irradiation at ambient temperatures. The alloy NPs strongly absorb light and efficiently enhance the conversion of several reactions, including Suzuki-Miyaura cross coupling, oxidative addition of benzylamine, selective oxidation of aromatic alcohols to corresponding aldehydes and ketones, and phenol oxidation. The Au/Pd molar ratio of the alloy NPs has an important impact on performance of the catalysts since it determines both the electronic heterogeneity and the distribution of Pd sites at the NP surface, with these two factors playing key roles in the catalytic activity. Irradiating with light produces an even more profound enhancement in the catalytic performance of the NPs. For example, the best conversion rate achieved thermally at 30 °C for Suzuki-Miyaura cross coupling was 37% at a Au/Pd ratio of 1:1.86, while under light illumination the yield increased to 96% under the same conditions. The catalytic activity of the alloy NPs depends on the intensity and wavelength of incident light. Light absorption due to the Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance of gold nanocrystals plays an important role in enhancing catalyst performance. We believe that the conduction electrons of the NPs gain the light absorbed energy producing energetic electrons at the surface Pd sites, which enhances the sites' intrinsic catalytic ability. These findings provide useful guidelines for designing efficient catalysts composed of alloys of a plasmonic metal and a catalytically active transition metal for various organic syntheses driven by sunlight.

Shedding light: Nitroaromatic compounds on gold nanoparticles (3 wt %) supported on ZrO2 can be reduced directly to the corresponding azo compounds when illuminated with visible light or ultraviolet light at 40 °C (see picture). The process occurs with high selectivity and at ambient temperature and pressure, and enables the selection of intermediates that are unstable in thermal reactions.

Supported nanoparticles (NPs) of nonplasmonic transition metals (Pd, Pt, Rh, and Ir) are widely used as thermally activated catalysts for the synthesis of important organic compounds, but little is known about their photocatalytic capabilities. We discovered that irradiation with light can significantly enhance the intrinsic catalytic performance of these metal NPs at ambient temperatures for several types of reactions. These metal NPs strongly absorb the light mainly through interband electronic transitions. The excited electrons interact with the reactant molecules on the particles to accelerate these reactions. The rate of the catalyzed reaction depends on the concentration and energy of the excited electrons, which can be increased by increasing the light intensity or by reducing the irradiation wavelength. The metal NPs can also effectively couple thermal and light energy sources to more efficiently drive chemical transformations.

Palladium (Pd)-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions are among the most important methods in organic synthesis. We report the discovery of highly efficient and green photocatalytic processes by which cross-coupling reactions, including Sonogashira, Stille, Hiyama, Ullmann, and Buchwald−Hartwig reactions, can be driven with visible light at temperatures slightly above room temperature using alloy nanoparticles of gold and Pd on zirconium oxide, thus achieving high yields. The alloy nanoparticles absorb visible light, and their conduction electrons gain energy, which is available at the surface Pd sites. Results of the density functional theory calculations indicate that transfer of the light excited electrons from the nanoparticle surface to the reactant molecules adsorbed on the nanoparticle surface activates the reactants. When the light intensity was increased, a higher reaction rate was observed, because of the increased population of photoexcited electrons. The irradiation wavelength also has an important impact on the reaction rates. Ultraviolet irradiation can drive some reactions with the chlorobenzene substrate, while visible light irradiation failed to, and substantially improve the yields of the reactions with the bromobenzene substrate. The discovery reveals the possibility of using low-energy and -density sources such as sunlight to drive chemical transformations.