A Strongly Coupled Ultrasmall Pt3Co Nanoparticle-Ultrathin Co(OH)2 Nanosheet Architecture Enhances Selective Hydrogenation of α,β-Unsaturated Aldehydes

The selective hydrogenation of alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes to value-added alpha,beta-unsaturated alcohols is a significant process in chemical industry, while the design of a catalyst with desirable activity, selectivity, and stability is challenging. Herein, we construct a sesame cake-like Pt3Co nanoparticles (NPs)@Co(OH)(2) nanosheets (NSs) architecture with strongly coupled Pt3Co-Co(OH)(2) interaction for efficient selective hydrogenation catalysis. The intimate interaction accompanied by highly dispersive ultrasmall Pt3Co NPs largely promotes the selective hydrogenation of alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes with cinnamaldehyde (CAL) conversion of 99.6% and selectivity of 91.3% to cinnamyl alcohol (COL) under mild conditions and high stability after 10 successive cycles. Significantly, the performance of Pt3Co NPs@Co(OH)(2) can also be expanded to the selective hydrogenation of other alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and attenuated total reflectance infrared (ATR-IR) spectra demonstrate that the high electron cloud density of Pt via the electron transfer from Co(OH)(2) to Pt suppresses C=C adsorption and activation and therefore enhances the selectivity of the C=O hydrogenation.