Chemical reactions catalysed by metal nanoparticles under sustainable conditions

Metal nanoparticles (NPs) and nano-catalysts are largely investigated given their unique properties. With the recent advances in nanochemistry and particularly in the synthesis of new highly active catalyst, nanocatalysis is now recognized as a full and rich part of catalysis. In the present research, an environmentally friendly synthetic method was developed for preparation of a new polymer supported Ni NPs (Ni-pol), generated by calcination under nitrogen of Ni(II) containing polyacrylamide. Ni-pol catalysed the hydrogenation of nitroarenes to anilines in aqueous medium, the one pot stepwise reductive amination of arylaldehydes with nitroarenes and the upgrade of bio oils. The catalyst was fully characterized by STEM, IR and elemental analysis before, during and after several catalytic runs. In the second part of this thesis, strategies of synthesis of metal nanoparticles (M-NPs) confined on triphenylphosphine (TPP) functionalized and organized (amphiphilic core-shell) polymers, termed core cross-linked micelle (CCM) were developed. TTP@CCMs were first loaded with complexes of Rh, Ru, Ir, Pt, Pd, Au, and then reduced under H2 at different temperatures (depending on the metal) to give polymer stabilized metal NPs. Turning several parameters a metal nanoparticles embedded in polymeric nanoreactors were obtained with uniform distribution. NPs were employed as catalysts in acetophenone, as model reaction, and in styrene hydrogenation. The NPs morphology was studied by TEM analyses before and after the catalytic applications.