Gold-palladium bimetallic nanoparticle catalysts prepared by a deposition-precipitation method were effective for aerobic oxidation of glycerol to carboxylic acids. The role of palladium was to suppress C-C bond cleavage that is responsible for the formation of C2 by-product molecules. The nanoparticles were observed by microscope techniques, which further enabled characterizing the respective locations of Au and Pd within the particles.