Airborne Preparation of Small Gold Nanoparticles Dispersed on Mesoporous Silica for the Catalytic Oxidation of Glycerol to Dihydroxyacetone

Supported gold nanoparticles play a fundamental role in modern material science and particularly heterogeneous catalysis. are known to be excellent catalysts, not only for the total oxidation of various pollutants (CO, VOCs) but also selective bio-based platform molecules (such as glycerol) added-value chemicals (dihydroxyacetone, glyceric acid, glycolic acid). Controlling their fine dispersion however remains challenge, especially when using silica supports. We report simple one-pot aerosol route mesoporous Au–SiO2 catalysts featuring small (∼3 nm). To achieve this, we rely on strong interactions between thiol functions mercapto-silane: (3-mercaptopropyl)-trimethoxysilane (MPTMS). The addition this stabilizer during synthesis enhances stability precursor is key controlling formation nanoparticles. reaches 21% (compared with 3% without stabilizer). glycerol dihydroxyacetone was employed test reaction, importance context sustainable chemistry. highly dispersed catalyst obtained via stabilization outcompetes benchmark reaching conversion 59% after 8 h (vs 5% stabilization).