Metal nanoparticles as emerging catalysts: A mini review

Green chemistry is the pragmatism of a set of principles, which eliminate the use or production of hazardous substances in the design, development, synthesis and applications of chemical harvest. Accordingly, green synthetic techniques aim at hazard reduction as the recital criteria, whilst designing new chemical processes/methods. Catalysis lies at the heart of all chemical processes and hence, nanocatalysts with particle size dependent material engineering are of significant interest towards green chemistry and clean energy applications. In addition to particle size, nanostructured catalysts are exceedingly shape and/or morphology sensitive and their catalytic performance depend largely on their shape and morphology. Besides, nanocatalysts empowered with colossal surface areas, excellent recycling potential and efficient recovery characteristics are heralded as new process candidates with expanding catalytic capabilities. Accordingly, recapitulation of the synthesis of several new types of chemical entities is using nanocatalysts in the heterocyclic ring formation and some other important functionalization.