CO 2 Selective Hydrogenation to Methanol Catalyzed by CuZn Active Sites Confined in Silicalite-1 Zeolite

The selective hydrogenation of CO 2 to methanol represents a promising strategy for mitigating CO 2 emissions while simultaneously producing valuable chemicals and fuels. Nonetheless, achieving high methanol selectivity and long-term catalyst stability remains a significant challenge, especially for classic CuZn-based catalysts. In this study, we introduce a simple postsynthesis method to generate abundant hydroxyl nests on pure silicate zeolite (S-1), designated as S-1-treated. Uniform CuZn nanoparticles were subsequently encapsulated within the S-1-treated zeolite via wetness impregnation. The obtained CuZn@S-1 catalyst exhibited high catalytic performance, achieving a stable methanol space-time yield (STY) of 10.1 mmol g cat –1 h –1 and a methanol selectivity of 91.0%. Moreover, this catalyst demonstrated good stability, maintaining performance for 240 h on-stream. In situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) analyses further confirmed the preferential formate reaction pathway for methanol formation over that of the CuZn@S-1 catalyst. This research provides a well-defined structure–activity relationship, underscoring the efficacy of zeolite-supported catalysis in addressing complex chemical transformations.