Eleven percent, atom by atom: a catalyst that turns CO2 into a useful chemical

Single-atom catalysts spread precious metals one atom at a time, so every atom can work — but until now, makers could rarely load more than about 2% of the metal before the atoms clumped together and stopped helping. Researchers at Tohoku University, with colleagues at Tsukuba, Kyoto and Osaka, have pushed ruthenium loading to 11% by weight while keeping the atoms separate. Published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition, the catalyst converted carbon dioxide into formic acid — a useful industrial chemical and hydrogen carrier — with over 99% selectivity, and kept performing after repeated use. 'The atoms stayed put,' is the plain-English version. The team, including Associate Professor Takeharu Yoshii, now plans to try the same trick with platinum, palladium and iridium.

SDG 9 · Industry, innovation and infrastructure — Mechanism: tech innovation