Carbon-Based Nanorod Catalysts for Nitrophenol Reduction

Three-dimensional porous carbon-based materials from metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have been proven useful in structural mechanical and catalytic applications due to the high specific surface area and excellent electron transport property. However, introducing and loading of metal catalytic sites on MOF-derived porous carbon-based materials always involves complex multistep synthetic processes and unwarrantable catalyst sites with high catalytic activity. Here, we have developed a facile Mo-doping-assisted strategy to construct a highly active nanorod with Ni-based catalyst nanoparticles from a MOF (MCF-61). Thanks to the assistance of Mo-doping to restrain the migration and aggregation of elemental Ni, the obtained Mo-doped Ni-based catalyst (MNC) exhibited excellent catalytic activity in the solution-phase hydrogenation of nitrophenols compared to those reported in other studies. Moreover, the role of molecular structures of nitrophenols on their reduction in MNC has been revealed by quantum chemical calculations. The unique structure, high catalytic activity, good cycle stability, and ease of separation individualize MNC with great potential in diverse applications.