Design synthesis of nitrogen-doped TiO₂@carbon nanosheets toward selective nitroaromatics reduction under mild conditions

The development of a facile, low-cost, and ecofriendly approach to the synthesis of aromatic amines remains a great scientific challenge. TiO₂, as a low-cost and earth abundant metal oxide, is usually not active for thermo-catalyzed nitro reduction. Herein, we report a composite nanosheet catalyst, composed of nitrogen-doped TiO₂ and carbon (N-TiO₂@C), which exhibits highly efficient, thermo-catalytic performance for selective nitroaromatic reduction at room temperature. The N-TiO₂@C nanosheet catalyst is synthesized via a facile approach where C₃N₄ nanosheets are utilized not only as a structuredirecting agent to control the shape, size, and crystal phase of TiO₂ but also as a source of nitrogen for doping into both TiO₂ and carbon nanosheets. Furthermore, the origin of the superior performance of the N-TiO₂@C nanosheet composite catalyst, along with a possible nitroaromatic reduction mechanism, has also been explored.