Pd nanoparticle supported reduced graphene oxide and its excellent catalytic activity for the Ullmann C-C coupling reaction in a green solvent.

An efficient and easy route to synthesize reduced graphene oxide with well dispersed palladium (Pd) nanoparticles (Pd(0)-RGO) is described. The synthesized materials were fully characterized by different techniques such as: XRD, FTIR, Raman, SEM, and TEM. An average particle size of 7.5 nm for the metal particles was confirmed by TEM analysis. Pd(0)-RGO demonstrated outstanding catalytic activity for Ullmann coupling with 97% yield and good reusability (4 cycles).