Photothermal Catalysis for CO2 Conversion

Photothermal catalysis for CO₂ conversion exploits the simultaneous absorption of light and generation of localised heat to drive chemical transformation of carbon dioxide into value-added products. By combining photonic and thermal inputs, specialised catalysts can attain elevated surface temperatures and energetic charge carriers, thereby accelerating reaction rates and tuning selectivity under moderate overall conditions. Advances in material design—ranging from plasmonic nanostructures to defect-engineered metal oxides—have enabled highly efficient hydrogenation of CO₂ to carbon monoxide, methane or methanol. This approach holds global significance for closing the carbon cycle, storing intermittent solar energy in chemical bonds and alleviating greenhouse-gas emissions through solar-driven fuel and feedstock synthesis.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated that non-stoichiometric indium oxide can be tuned to a black form with amorphous domains, greatly enhancing light absorption and local heat generation. The resultant catalyst achieves near-100% selectivity for CO₂ hydrogenation to CO with a turnover frequency exceeding 2 s⁻¹ under combined light and thermal input. Surface engineering by isomorphic substitution of indium with bismuth has been shown to amplify the activity of surface frustrated Lewis pairs, boosting photocatalytic reverse water–gas shift rates by three orders of magnitude and promoting methanol formation via improved charge separation. A biomimetic two-step strategy employs a plasmonic bismuth mediator that stores hydrogen in a Bi–Hₓ intermediate; upon light irradiation, coupled electron-proton pairs drive CO₂ reduction to CO with production efficiencies surpassing 280 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹, illustrating a sustainable cycle that bypasses sacrificial reagents.

Photothermal Catalysis for CO2 Conversion publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in photothermal catalysis for co2 conversion across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Photothermal catalysis: A process in which light absorption generates local heat at a catalyst’s surface, driving chemical reactions without external heating.

Localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR): The collective oscillation of conduction electrons in metal nanoparticles excited by specific light wavelengths, enhancing light absorption and local heating.

Surface Frustrated Lewis Pairs (SFLPs): Adjacent Lewis acid and base sites on a solid surface that remain unquenched by steric hindrance, enabling activation of small molecules.

Single-atom catalysts: Catalytic materials in which isolated metal atoms dispersed on a support serve as uniform active sites with maximised atom efficiency.

Reverse water–gas shift reaction (RWGS): The hydrogenation of CO₂ to CO and H₂O, often serving as a key step in syngas generation for further fuel synthesis.

Turnover frequency (TOF): A measure of catalytic activity defined as the number of reactant molecules converted per active site per unit time.

References

1. 100% Conversion of CO2–CH4 with Non-Precious Co@ZnO Catalyst in Hot Water. Nano-Micro Letters (2025).
2. Fundamentals and applications of photo-thermal catalysis. Chemical Society Reviews (2021).
3. Black indium oxide a photothermal CO2 hydrogenation catalyst. Nature Communications (2020).
4. Bismuth atom tailoring of indium oxide surface frustrated Lewis pairs boosts heterogeneous CO2 photocatalytic hydrogenation. Nature Communications (2020).
5. Plasmonic photothermal catalysis for solar-to-fuel conversion: current status and prospects. Chemical Science (2021).
6. Boosting thermo-photocatalytic CO2 conversion activity by using photosynthesis-inspired electron-proton-transfer mediators. Nature Communications (2021).