Effects of Noncovalent Interactions on the Catalytic Activity of Unsupported Colloidal Palladium Nanoparticles Stabilized with Thiolate Ligands
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Updated: Feb 15, 2026

Ligand-Mediated Nucleation and Growth of Palladium Metal Nanoparticles
Published on: June 25, 2018
May S Maung1, Young-Seok Shon1
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, California State University, Long Beach, 1250 Bellflower Boulevard, Long Beach, California 90840, United States.
Abstract:
This article presents the systematic evaluation of colloidal palladium nanoparticles functionalized with well-defined small organic ligands that provide spatial control of the geometric and electronic surface properties of nanoparticle catalysts. Palladium nanoparticles stabilized with thiolate ligands of different structures and functionalities (linear alkyl vs cyclohexyl vs phenyl) are synthesized using the thiosulfate protocol in a two-phase system. The structure and composition of palladium nanoparticles are characterized using transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, NMR, and UV-vis spectroscopies. The catalysis studies show that the chemical and structural compositions of monolayers surrounding the nanoparticle core greatly influence the overall activity and selectivity of colloidal palladium nanoparticle catalysts for the hydrogenation, isomerization, and hydrogenolysis of allylic alcohols. Especially, noncovalent interactions between surface phenyl ligands and incoming aromatic substrates are found to have a profound influence on the selectivity of colloidal palladium nanoparticles.
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