Fundamentals and applications of photocatalytic CO2 methanation

Ulrich Ulmer; Thomas Dingle; Paul N Duchesne; Robert H Morris; Alexandra Tavasoli; Thomas Wood; Geoffrey A Ozin

doi:10.1038/s41467-019-10996-2

Fundamentals and applications of photocatalytic CO₂ methanation

Nat Commun. 2019 Jul 18;10(1):3169. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-10996-2.

Authors

Ulrich Ulmer¹, Thomas Dingle^{2

3}, Paul N Duchesne², Robert H Morris², Alexandra Tavasoli^{2

3}, Thomas Wood², Geoffrey A Ozin⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3H6, Canada. ulrich.ulmer@gmx.de.
² Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3H6, Canada.
³ Department of Material Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, 184 College Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3E4, Canada.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 3H6, Canada. gozin@chem.utoronto.ca.

Abstract

The extraction and combustion of fossil natural gas, consisting primarily of methane, generates vast amounts of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. However, as a result of recent research efforts, "solar methane" can now be produced through the photocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide and water to methane and oxygen. This approach could play an integral role in realizing a sustainable energy economy by closing the carbon cycle and enabling the efficient storage and transportation of intermittent solar energy within the chemical bonds of methane molecules. In this article, we explore the latest research and development activities involving the light-assisted conversion of carbon dioxide to methane.

Publication types

Review