Nanoreactor of Fe3O4@SiO2 core-shell structure with nanochannels for efficient catalysis.

We introduced a new nanoreactor system consisting of nanochannel-filled Fe3O4 core and SiO2 shell. Different morphologies of Fe3O4@SiO2 core-shell nanostructures could be obtained through simple HCl etching of the magnetic cores. The outer silica shells were permeable and the Fe3O4 cores were accessible to the reactants. Therefore, the present nanoreactor system was applied to catalyze the reduction of H2O2, and it showed outstanding catalytic activity compared with bare Fe3O4 or Fe3O4@SiO2 core-shell nanoparticles.