Status and perspectives of CO2 conversion into fuels and chemicals by catalytic, photocatalytic and electrocatalytic processes

Abstract

This review highlights recent developments and future perspectives in carbon dioxide usage for the sustainable production of energy and chemicals and to reduce global warming. We discuss the heterogeneously catalysed hydrogenation, as well as the photocatalytic and electrocatalytic conversion of CO 2 to hydrocarbons or oxygenates. Various sources of hydrogen are also reviewed in terms of their CO 2 neutrality. Technologies have been developed for large-scale CO 2 hydrogenation to methanol or methane. Their industrial application is, however, limited by the high price of renewable hydrogen and the availability of large-volume sources of pure CO 2. With regard to the direct electrocatalytic reduction of CO 2 to value-added chemicals, substantial advances in electrodes, electrolyte, and reactor design are still required to permit the development of commercial processes. Therefore, in this review particular attention is paid to (i) the design of metal electrodes to improve their performance and (ii) recent developments of alternative approaches such as the application of ionic liquids as electrolytes and of microorganisms as co-catalysts. The most significant improvements both in catalyst and reactor design are needed for the photocatalytic functionalisation of CO 2 to become a viable technology that can help in the usage of CO 2 as a feedstock for the production of energy and chemicals. Apart from technological aspects and catalytic performance, we also discuss fundamental strategies for the rational design of materials for effective transformations of CO 2 to value-added chemicals with the help of H 2 , electricity and/or light.

One‐Pot Synthesis of Cu‐Nanocluster‐Decorated Brookite TiO2Quasi‐Nanocubes for Enhanced Activity and Selectivity of CO2 Photoreduction to CH4

“…[1][2][3][4][5] Generally, it can be considered that co-catalysts serve as an electron sink by formation of Schottky junctions at the semiconductor/metal interfaces, and the co-catalyst with larger work function is more readily to trap electrons. [49,50] In this work, it is easily agreedt hat the metallicC u nanoclusters on the BTN surfaces act as co-catalyst, and thus lead to the enhanced photocatalytic activity for CO 2 reduction as compared to the pristine BTN.…”

“…Up to now,v arioust echniques, such as catalyzed chemical, electrochemical, photochemical, andp hotoelectrochemical processes, have been applied to convert CO 2 into useful chemicals. [1][2][3][4][5][6] Among these, the photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 with H 2 Ot os olar fuels is considered to be the most promising and attractive approach since it can not only convert CO 2 into clean solarf uels but also store the solar energy in those chemical fuels. [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Among various photocatalysts developed, nanosized TiO 2 -basedm aterials are the most extensively used ones in photocatalytic systems because of their high stabilitya nd efficiency under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation.…”

Synthesis and Catalytic Applications of Non-Metal Doped Mesoporous Titania

“…Recently, depletion of fossil fuels and climate change due to CO 2 emission have become profound concerns [232]. To tackle these global concerns, intensive research is ongoing to find clean and renewable energy sources and reduce CO 2 emissions.…”

Liquid Hydrocarbon Production from CO2: Recent Development in Metal‐Based Electrocatalysis

“…For instance, the Sabatier reaction is aw ell-known and intensively studied thermochemical methodt hat can reduce CO 2 to CH 4 ,b ut this technique requires the production of H 2 as well as requiring high operating temperature and pressure. [8,9] Ap romising alternative for CO 2 mitigation could be through the electrochemical reduction of CO 2 with homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts to produce value-added chemicals. [13][14][15] Electrochemical CO 2 reduction reactions (CO 2 RR) are typically carriedo ut under ambient conditions through the applicationofa ne xternal bias, which promotes its feasibility for large-scale applications.A dditionally,t he energy required for such reactions can be derived from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, which would allow the added advantage of storing the diffusive and intermittent renewable energy resources in the form of chemical fuels.…”