A green chemistry protocol and novel catalytic system PVDF-IL nanofiber composites were successfully prepared by an electrospinning method and characterized by FT-IR and SEM. The catalyst was tested straightforwardly for the reduction of carbonyl compounds with NaBH4 in water at ambient temperature to the corresponding alcohols. The nanocomposites exhibit good reusability, simple workup procedure, and good to excellent yields of products. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.