Development of an active and stable ceria-supported palladium catalyst for hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to methanol

A Pd/CeO2 catalyst reduced by flowing hydrogen at 500° C for 1 h was found to be an excellent catalyst for the hydrogenation of CO2 to methanol. At 230°C and 30 bar, the C02 conversion was 3% while methanol selectivity reached 90% even if the composition of reactant gas was CO2 : H2 = 1:3. The durability of this catalyst was also extremely high. The effect of the reaction temperature, the contact time of the reactants as well as the CO2/H2 ratio on the reaction performance were investigated. The reaction mechanism is discussed.