The transformation of CO2 into alcohols or other hydrocarbon compounds is challenging because of the difficulties associated with the chemical activation of CO2 by heterogeneous catalysts. Pure metals and bimetallic systems used for this task have usually trouble binding CO2 and, thus, low catalytic activity. Here, we will discuss a series of in-situ studies investigating the mechanism of CO2 hydrogenation on metal/oxide catalysts. They illustrate the advantages of metal-oxide interfaces when aiming at the conversion of CO2 into methanol. CeOx/Cu(111), Cu/CeOx/TiO2(110) and Au/CeOx/TiO2(110) exhibit an activity for the CO2 → CH3OH conversion that is 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than that of a benchmark Cu(111) catalyst. In the Cu-ceria and Au-ceria interfaces, the combination of metal and oxide centers affords complementary chemical properties that lead to special reaction pathways for methanol synthesis

Mechanistic studies on the hydrogenation of CO2 to methanol: Importance of metal-oxide interfaces in the activation of CO2

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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