Catalysing the reduction of oxygen in acidic media is a standing challenge. Although activity of platinum, the most active metal, can be substantially improved by alloying, alloy stability remains a concern. Here we report that platinum nanoparticles supported on graphite-rich boron carbide show a 50-100% increase in activity in acidic media and improved cycle stability compared to commercial c...

Furfural is one of the most promising chemical platforms with bright perspective with respect to the production of biobased chemicals and fuels from lignocellulosic material. Globally, the majority of this biomass derived chemical is converted into furfuryl alcohol, a building block in polymers industry. The vapor-phase hydrogenation of furfural over copper species dispersed on two types of sil...

A facile and efficient synthesis of bis(indolyl)methanes derivatives (3a-u) was reported via a condensation reaction of aldehydes and indole in the presence of by silica-supported-3-(triethoxysilyl) propane-1-ammonium chloride catalysis under solvent free conditions. We studied the reaction in different conditions and optimized. The use of just 0.02 g of (silica gel-ammonium salt) is sufficient...

The methodology involves preparing polyvinyl sulfuric acid as a solid acid by simple mixing ofpolyvinyl alcohol with chlorosulfonic acid in CH2Cl2 at room temperature. The catalytic ability ofthe solid acid was investigated for the facile conversion of benzylic alcohols to the unsymmetricalethers with aliphatic alcohols in the presence of the solid acid. Results show that the solid acid isan ap...