Green chemistry by nano-catalysis

TLDR

Nano‑materials serve as sustainable, high‑surface‑area heterogeneous catalysts that enhance reactant contact and mimic homogeneous catalysts, making them valuable across electronics, sensors, catalysis, and energy. The review aims to demonstrate a green, sustainable approach by combining nano‑catalysis with microwave heating in aqueous media and to illustrate its proof‑of‑concept through representative examples. The mechanism involves coupling nano‑catalysis with microwave heating in benign aqueous media to achieve a synergistic effect that surpasses each component alone.

Abstract

Nano-materials are important in many diverse areas, from basic research to various applications in electronics, biochemical sensors, catalysis and energy. They have emerged as sustainable alternatives to conventional materials, as robust high surface area heterogeneous catalysts and catalyst supports. The nano-sized particles increase the exposed surface area of the active component of the catalyst, thereby enhancing the contact between reactants and catalyst dramatically and mimicking the homogeneous catalysts. This review focuses on the use of nano-catalysis for green chemistry development including the strategy of using microwave heating with nano-catalysis in benign aqueous reaction media which offers an extraordinary synergistic effect with greater potential than these three components in isolation. To illustrate the proof-of-concept of this “green and sustainable” approach, representative examples are discussed in this article.