Transmetallation as an effective strategy for the preparation of bimetallic CoPd and CuPd nanoparticles

What is it about?

In this paper we played with an intriguing system, depositing Pd on Co via colloidal means and observing the phase evolution of the system. We exploited a process called transmetallation, where the incoming species gradually replace the preexisting ones, leading to the desired structural evolution. We also controlled the surface oxidation in order to make the process feasible, and found that Co and Pd can coexist with mixed epsilon and fcc phases up to limit concentrations.

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Why is it important?

First of all we discovered how to clean the Co NPs surface from oxidation in an easy way, that saves a lot of troubles allowing for an easier handling and storage. Then we found that there's room for playing with phases on the NPs, having alloys with complementary compositions and different structure. We are going to exploit these findings to obtain stable catalysts in other metal systems.