Deposition of Pd–Pt alloy zigzag shell over Au nanorods for boosted catalysis and thermo-photo catalysis

Multimetallic plasmonic nanostructures, with appropriate morphology, elemental proportions and sizes, can be used to accelerate photocatalytic reactions. Here, we designed zigzag trimetallic nanostructures with the Au core and Pd–Pt alloy shell, whose catalytic ability was boosted by the synergistic effect of the plasmonic metal and catalytic metal. The catalytic rate of Au@PdPt nanoparticle (NP) with no light have a significant improvement, attributed to the larger contact area provided by the zigzag alloy shell. Furthermore, the enhanced catalytic activity in the presence of light is primarily due to the thermo-photo catalytic effect of plasmonic Au. The adding ratios of Pd:Pt were adjusted from 1:4 to 4:1, and we found that, when adding the Pd:Pt of 1:1, the zigzag Au@PdPt nanoparticle (NP) exhibited a superior reaction rate in the reduction methylene blue (MB) under light illumination. The rate is 8 times higher than that of Au@Pt, and the reduction conversion reached 100%. And it has a favorable plasmon enhancement factor with an appropriate shell thickness and get the balance between the catalytic performance and economic effects. This structure driven by capability-oriented design principles and holds the potential for applications in the field of catalysis.