title: Bimetallic Ag-Au nanowires: synthesis, growth mechanism, and catalytic properties.
abstract: Silver-gold (Ag-Au) bimetallic nanowires were controllably synthesized by a newly developed wet-chemical method at room temperature. The Ag nanowires and Au nanoparticles were sequentially formed by reduction with vanadium oxide (V2O3) nanoparticles so as to form Ag-Au bimetal, in which the Ag nanowires show a diameter of ~20 nm and length up to 10 μm. A few unique features were noted in our new approach: it was rapid (within a few minutes), controllable in shape and size, reproducible, and there was no need for any surface modifiers. The formation and growth mechanisms of these Ag-Au bimetallic nanostructures driven by lattice match and a unique reducing agent (V2O3) have been proposed in this study. Moreover, the application of such bimetallic nanoparticles for catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol was performed, and they exhibit catalytic properties superior to those of the Ag nanowires, Au nanoparticles, and Ag-Pd bimetallic nanostructures prepared under the reported conditions. These Ag-Au bimetallic nanoparticles have potential to be highly efficient catalysts for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol. This study may lead to new path for the generation of other bimetallic nanostructures with excellent catalytic efficiency.
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
authors.forename: Haitao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.forename: Xiaohong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Xuchuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: Aibing
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yu