Ni and Zn/ZnO Synergistically Catalyzed Reduction of Bicarbonate into Formate with Water Splitting

Conversion of CO2 into value added chemicals with a facile hydrogen source such as water is always of great interest for sustainable development. In this work, a simple and efficient method of reduction of bicarbonate to formate on a simple Ni powder catalyst with water as the facile hydrogen source and Zn as the regenerable reductant is proposed. The Ni catalyst and in situ formed Zn/ZnO exhibited a synergetic catalytic activity in the conversion of bicarbonate into formate, and a good formate yield of 81% was obtained. Detailed studies revealed that the synergetic catalytic activity between Ni and the in situ formed Zn/ZnO was mainly attributed to (i) the inhibited oxidation of Zn by Ni, leading to more interface of Zn/ZnO; (ii) the decreased growth of ZnO crystal along the [0001] direction, and thus increasing the more polar (0001) Zn face and the (000 (1) over bar) O face, which have high activity; and (iii) the enhanced generation of more oxygen vacancies at the Zn/ZnO interface to promote the formate yield. This research demonstrates an efficient method of using a simple and nonprecious metal catalyst for the CO2 reduction into value-added chemicals and provides a better understanding of the synergistic catalytic mechanism of Ni and Zn/ZnO.