Intermetallic Rh3Sn2 Catalysts for Selective Hydrogenation of Functionalized Nitroarenes to Aromatic Ammonia

Abstract The selective reduction of functionalized nitroarenes to aniline is a promising strategy to produce industrially vital aniline intermediates, while achieving high selectivity is challenging. Here, we reported the synthesis of structurally ordered Rh 3 Sn 2 intermetallic catalysts that exhibited a high selectivity of 95.1 % in the hydrogenation of 4‐nitrostyrene to 4‐aminostyrene. Density functional theory calculation reveals that the adsorption of nitrostyrene through the nitro group on Rh 3 Sn 2 (110) surface are great improved with the addition of the Sn atom. In addition, a significant electronic effect is formed between Rh and Sn by charge transfer that makes the Rh 3 Sn 2 intermetallic compound more favorable for the hydrogenation of nitro group.