A team of Yale chemists has discovered a new method for transforming carbon dioxide (CO2) into a valuable chemical called formate, which is commonly used in preservatives and pesticides.
This breakthrough could help scientists develop new ways to reduce greenhouse gases and create useful materials from CO2.
The study, led by Nilay Hazari and James Mayer, was published on March 7 in the journal Chem.
Their findings offer an alternative approach to existing methods that convert CO2 into carbon monoxide (CO)—a key step in making alternative fuels and sustainable products.
Instead, this new research focuses on producing formate, which could serve as a building block for even more complex chemicals.
Most fuels and chemicals today come from fossil fuels, which contribute to global warming and environmental damage.
Finding alternative ways to create important chemicals from CO2, a greenhouse gas, could help reduce the impact of climate change.
“There is an urgent need for alternative sources of chemical materials,” said Professor Nilay Hazari, chair of Yale’s chemistry department and a member of the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture.
Hazari and Mayer are also part of CHASE (Center for Hybrid Approaches in Solar Energy to Liquid Fuels), a research initiative focused on using solar energy to create sustainable fuels.
A new type of catalyst
Converting CO2 into useful products on a large scale has been difficult because it requires high temperatures and pressures and efficient catalysts. The Yale team found a new type of catalyst system that works under milder conditions and is more stable than many existing methods.
Their approach uses molecular manganese catalysts attached to a special material called porous silicon. When exposed to light, the silicon absorbs energy and transfers electrons to the catalyst, allowing it to convert CO2 into formate.
“Formate is a promising product because it can be used to make large-scale industrial materials,” said Professor Mayer.
One of the key discoveries was that adding a thin oxide layer to the silicon surface improved the catalyst’s performance. This insight could lead to more efficient and stable catalysts for other chemical processes as well.
Graduate student Eleanor Stewart-Jones, a co-lead author of the study, explained that modifying porous silicon surfaces is a well-known technique. However, using it to fine-tune chemical reactions is an exciting new direction for future research.
The research team believes this discovery could be applied to other chemical processes, not just CO2 conversion.
The study’s other co-lead authors include Xiaofan Jia of Yale and Young Hyun Hong, a former Yale researcher now at Sogang University in South Korea.
With further development, this method could help turn CO2 into valuable chemicals in a more sustainable and environmentally friendly way.
