Copper oxide derived from copper(I) complex of 2-acetylpyridine-N(4)-(methoxy phenyl)thiosemicarbazone as an efficient catalyst in the reduction of 4-nitrophenol

Abstract

A copper(I) complex of 2-acetylpyridine-N(4)-(methoxy phenyl)thiosemicarbazone was successfully synthesized and structurally characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies, thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and CHN elemental analyses. The complex was converted into copper oxide in a simple, efficient, and cheap method via solid state thermal decomposition. Test of the catalytic performance of the copper(I) complex and copper oxide were in the reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) shows that copper oxide has a higher catalytic activity (98.7%) compared to the copper(I) complex (78.2%). Optimization of the catalyst loading revealed that 1.0 mol% of catalyst was the most optimized amount with the highest conversion (98.7%) than any other amounts, 0.5 mol% (96.8%), 1.5 mol% (95.4%) and 2.0 mol% (89.6%). Recyclability and reproducibility tests of copper oxide prove that this catalyst was very efficient, exhibit excellent reproducibility with consistent catalytic performances and could be reused four times without significant decrease in the catalytic activities.