Copper nanoparticles growth on the borophosphate glass surface by bottom-up approach: A catalyst for click reactions

This work proposes synthesizing metal–glass hybrid composites with applications in catalysis. Metallic copper nanoparticles can be self-supported on the surface of borophosphate glasses, an effective substrate for the growth of auto-supported nanoparticles by bottom-up approach. Doped copper glasses were obtained by the melt-quenching method. The temperature required for nanoparticle growth, determined by temperature programmed reduction, is relatively low as 430 °C, and the process can be accomplished in a short time (45 min). In X-ray diffraction analysis, the normalized intensity shows an inverse correlation between the mean glass particle size and the intensity of metallic copper peaks. The glass substrate was characterized by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy, static laser scattering, and Raman spectroscopy. Scanning electron microscopy was employed to access the morphology, while the crystalline nature of copper was confirmed by X-ray diffraction. The hybrid composites were used as a catalyst on the Click chemistry for 1,2,3-triazoles synthesis under solvent-free conditions.