A Process for the Synthesis of Formic Acid by CO2 Hydrogenation: Thermodynamic Aspects and the Role of CO

Alcohol and CO: A new process for hydrogenating CO2 to formic acid has been developed. Calorimetric studies were carried out to clarify the role of the alcohol solvent in the catalytic cycle. CO2 hydrogenation is only thermodynamically feasible in the presence of hydrogen-bonding solvents. NMR spectroscopy indicates that catalytically active monocarbonyl complexes are formed when highly basic alkyl phosphine complexes are used as catalysts. Detailed facts of importance to specialist readers are published as ”Supporting Information”. Such documents are peer-reviewed, but not copy-edited or typeset. They are made available as submitted by the authors. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.