Physicochemical properties and catalytic activity of metal–carbon carrier composite materials

Composite metal–carbon materials are created on the basis of different kinds of carbon (multiwall carbon nanotubes, carbon black, Sibunit carbon–carbon material) and metals (Ag, Ni, Co), and their physicochemical and catalytic properties are investigated. It is shown that interaction between metals and carbon carriers proceeds not only with the functional groups on the surfaces of the carriers, but also through a system of–C–C–conjugated bonds. Silver deposited on the surface of a carbon carrier has a crystalline structure (d_cr = 10–15 nm), while nickel has an amorphous lamellar structure. Based on quantum-chemical calculations using the density functional theory, it is shown that cumene oxidation occurs via a homogeneous–heterogeneous mechanism.