Selective visible-light photocatalysis of acetylene to ethylene using a cobalt molecular catalyst and water as a proton source
2022; Nature Portfolio; Volume: 14; Issue: 9 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1038/s41557-022-00966-5
ISSN1755-4349
AutoresFrancesca Arcudi, Luka Đorđević∞, Neil M. Schweitzer, Samuel I. Stupp, Emily A. Weiss,
Tópico(s)CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
ResumoThe production of polymers from ethylene requires the ethylene feed to be sufficiently purified of acetylene contaminant. Accomplishing this task by thermally hydrogenating acetylene requires a high temperature, an external feed of H2 gas and noble-metal catalysts. It is not only expensive and energy-intensive, but also prone to overhydrogenating to ethane. Here we report a photocatalytic system that reduces acetylene to ethylene with ≥99% selectivity under both non-competitive (no ethylene co-feed) and competitive (ethylene co-feed) conditions, and near 100% conversion under the latter industrially relevant conditions. Our system uses a molecular catalyst based on earth-abundant cobalt operating under ambient conditions and sensitized by either [Ru(bpy)3]2+ or an inexpensive organic semiconductor (metal-free mesoporous graphitic carbon nitride) under visible light. These features and the use of water as a proton source offer advantages over current hydrogenation technologies with respect to selectivity and sustainability.
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