Polyoxometalate-HKUST-1 composite derived nanostructured Na-Cu-Mo2C catalyst for efficient reverse water gas shift reaction

Abstract

Transforming CO2 to CO via reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) reaction is widely regarded as a promising technique for improving the efficiency and economics of the CO2 utilization processes. Moreover, it is also considered as a pathway towards e-fuels. Cu-oxide catalysts are widely explored for low-temperature RWGS, nevertheless, they tend to deactivate significantly in applied reaction conditions due to the agglomeration of copper particles at elevated temperatures. Herein, we have synthesized homogeneously distributed Cu metallic nanoparticles supported on Mo2C for RWGS reaction by a unique approach in-situ carburization of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) comprised of Cu-based MOF i.e., HKUST-1 encapsulating molybdenum-based polyoxometalates. The newly derived Na-Cu-Mo2C nanocomposite catalyst system exhibits excellent catalytic performance with a CO production rate of 3230.0 mmol gcat-1 h-1 with 100 % CO selectivity. Even after 250 h of stability test, the catalyst remained active with more than 80 % of its initial activity.