Ambient CO2 Hydrogenation to Formate Over NiPd Catalyst

The urgent need for sustainable CO₂ management has driven the development of efficient catalytic systems capable of converting CO₂ into value-added chemicals under mild conditions. Herein, we report a Ni₉Pd₁ catalyst with a low Pd content (Ni/Pd = 9:1) for the selective CO₂ hydrogenation to formate at low temperatures. Remarkably, this catalyst exhibits exceptional versatility, efficiently hydrogenating both aqueous (bi)carbonate and CO₂ captured from air (as carbonate) to formate. Moreover, this catalyst shows appreciable robustness by achieving cumulative formate yields of 770.5 mmol g_Pd⁻¹ (TON of 82, STY of 32.18 mmol_formate g_Pd⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 28 °C) and 1371.9 mmol g_Pd⁻¹ (TON of 146, STY of 57.16 mmol_formate g_Pd⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 80 °C) over multiple cycles. The synergistic Ni-to-Pd interaction in this catalyst leads to the efficient CO₂ activation and H₂ dissociation, enabling operation under mild conditions. This study demonstrates an integrated and sustainable approach where CO₂ captured from air can be hydrogenated to formate at low temperature.