Distinct roles of Te and Mo in modulating the activity and selectivity of CO2 hydrogenation to ethanol over CoFe catalysts

Abstract

This study demonstrated that Te doping of a CoFe catalyst resulted in an ethanol selectivity of 7.3% and a yield of 26.7 g_EtOH kg_cat⁻¹ h⁻¹, while Mo doping led to a CO selectivity of 38.8%. Advanced characterization, including in situ DRIFTS, revealed that Te facilitated formate-mediated C–C coupling, whereas Mo promoted RWGS via strong interaction with *CO intermediates.