Magnetic boron nitride adorned with Pd nanoparticles: an efficient catalyst for the reduction of nitroarenes in aqueous media

Hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is an excellent support material for nanocatalysts due to its two-dimensional (2D) architectural morphology and physicochemical stability. In this study, a chemically stable, recoverable, eco-friendly, and magnetic h-BN/Pd/Fe₂O₃ catalyst was prepared by a one-step calcination process, in which Pd and Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles (NPs) were uniformly decorated on the surface of h-BN <i>via</i> a typical adsorption-reduction procedure. In detail, nanosized magnetic (Pd/Fe₂O₃) NPs were derived from a Prussian blue analogue prototype, a well-known porous metal-organic framework, and then further surface-engineered to produce magnetic BN nanoplate-supported Pd nanocatalysts. The structural and morphological features of h-BN/Pd/Fe₂O₃ were investigated by spectroscopic and microscopic characterization techniques. Moreover, the h-BN nanosheets endow it with stability and appropriate chemical anchoring sites which solve the problems of inefficient reaction rate and high consumption caused by the inevitable agglomeration of precious metal NPs. Under mild reaction conditions, the developed nanostructured h-BN/Pd/Fe₂O₃ as the catalyst shows high yield and efficient reusability in reducing nitroarenes into the corresponding anilines using sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) as a reductant.