Ultra-small gold nanoparticles immobilized on mesoporous silica/graphene oxide as highly active and stable heterogeneous catalysts.

Here we demonstrate the in situ formation of ultra-small gold nanoparticles (<2 nm) finely dispersed on a binary solid carrier, i.e. a mesoporous SiO2 coated graphene oxide (GO) nanosheet. The as-synthesized Au-SiO2-GO composite has shown high catalytic activity and reusability for chemical reactions under mild conditions.