Synthesis of CuCr2O4/Reduced Graphene Oxide Composite: A Green Catalyst for Selective Oxidation of Cyclohexane to Cyclohexanone with Hydrogen Peroxide

CuCr2O4/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composites were prepared using a two-step method. Detailed characterizations of the material were performed with X-ray diffraction (XRD), Zeta potential, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectra, and Thermal Gravimetric Analyzer (TGA). The characterizations showed that the similar to 50 nm CuCr2O4 nanoparticles were successfully supported on the rGO via static electricity. The TGA results showed that the quality of rGO in composites was around 10%. The experimental results showed that the catalysts obtained high catalytic activity for the selective oxidation of cyclohexane to cyclohexanone with H2O2. The catalyst obtained a conversion rate of cyclohexane of up to 95.8%. 78.1% cyclohexanone selectivity was obtained. The catalyst had good cycling stability after 5 reuses. Compared to the other composite materials, the catalyst had high catalytic activity for the selective oxidation of cyclohexane to cyclohexanone.