Nitrogen-rich graphitic carbon stabilized cobalt nanoparticles as an effective heterogeneous catalyst for hydrogenation of CO2 to formate

Abstract

In this article, we report a catalytic reduction of CO2 to formate in the presence of metallic cobalt nanoparticles as an elegant heterogeneous catalyst. The aforementioned cobalt nanoparticles was prepared by the pyrolysis of impregnated cobalt precursor on cucurbit[6]uril (CB[6]). During the pyrolysis process, CB[6] framework transform to the nitrogen-rich graphitic carbon support in which cobalt nanoparticles were present in their metallic state. The synthesized catalyst was highly active for the catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 with 1 M KOH solution at 120 °C by applying 1:1 partial pressure of pCO2/pH2 to obtain a high TON of 82,265 in 24 h. Moreover, the influence of all the catalytic parameters was investigated with the reusability of the catalyst. In sort, the catalytic protocol shows excellent activity and robust nature for the CO2 utilization reaction with economical/ abundant metal source, in aqueous media and with molecular hydrogen.