Direct C–C Coupling of CO2 and the Methyl Group from CH4 Activation through Facile Insertion of CO2 into Zn–CH3 σ-Bond

Conversion of CO2 and CH4 to value-added products will contribute to alleviating the green-house gas effect but is a challenge both scientifically and practically. Stabilization of the methyl group through CH4 activation and facile CO2 insertion ensure the realization of C-C coupling. In the present study, we demonstrate the ready C-C coupling reaction on a Zn-doped ceria catalyst. The detailed mechanism of this direct C-C coupling reaction was examined based on the results from density functional theory calculations. The results show that the Zn dopant stabilizes the methyl group by forming a Zn-C bond, thus hindering subsequent dehydrogenation of CH4. CO2 can be inserted into the Zn-C bond in an activated bent configuration, with the transition state in the form of a three-centered Zn-C-C moiety and an activation barrier of 0.51 eV. The C-C coupling reaction resulted in the acetate species, which could desorb as acetic acid by combining with a surface proton. The formation of acetic acid from CO2 and CH4 is a reaction with 100% atom economy, and the implementation of the reaction on a heterogeneous catalyst is of great importance to the utilization of the greenhouse gases. We tested other possible dopants including Al, Ga, Cd, In, and Ni and found a positive correlation between the activation barrier of C-C coupling and the electronegativity of the dopant, although C-H bond activation is likely the dominant reaction on the Ni-doped ceria catalyst.