Ecofriendly synthesis of tunable silver copper nanoparticles supported on silica for carbon monoxide free hydrogen production from formic acid

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The extremely small size and high surface energy of metal nanoparticles (NPs) sometimes lead to their agglomeration, thereby lowering the catalytic performance. This issue is resolved by using a support that enhances dispersion, reduces NPs’ aggregation, and facilitates catalyst separation at the end of the reaction. The present study depicts the facile and eco-friendly synthesis of Ag-Cu/SiO 2 catalysts via a reduction approach. Ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) were used to confirm successful synthesis and to perform morphological and compositional analyses of the catalyst. The as-prepared catalysts with different molar ratios were examined for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by catalytic dehydrogenation of formic acid (FA). The Ag 9 Cu 1 /SiO 2 catalyst exhibited the highest catalytic activity, achieving a TOF of 2724 h − 1 at 90 °C together with an activation energy of 31.3 ± 1.46 kJ mol − 1 . These findings open a new path towards the rational synthesis of highly active and robust noble-metal heterogeneous catalysts for CO-free hydrogen production from FA, for use in sustainable energy and fuel cell technologies, and for pollution control.