A suitably fabricated ternary nanocomposite (Cu-CuO@rGO-SiO 2 ) as a sustainable and common heterogeneous catalyst for C-S, C-O and C-N coupling reactions.

A hybrid composite based on π-electron rich reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and mesoporous silica (SiO 2 ) was prepared and decorated with copper species to afford a ternary nanocomposite material (Cu-CuO@rGO-SiO 2 ). This copper-based nanocomposite was successfully used as a robust and multi-tasking heterogeneous catalyst for most common cross-coupling reactions ( e.g. C-S, C-O and C-N coupling). A broad range of catalytic activities are believed to be originated from the synergism of different co-existing copper species (Cu(0) and CuO) and facile charge transfer from the metal ions towards rGO-SiO 2 matrices, as established from XPS and other studies.