Chemical process more efficiently converts carbon dioxide to methanol, a chemical used in manufacturing and a potential fuel

A new chemical process funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation has produced methanol — a type of alcohol essential for manufacturing many common products and a potential fuel source — more efficiently than ever before. The method generates methanol from carbon dioxide nearly 66% more efficiently than the next best approach.

The process uses a dual combination of nickel- and cobalt-based compounds as a catalyst on nanotubes, where multiple chemical reactions and electricity convert carbon dioxide to methanol. More of the C0₂ is transformed into methanol and with comparatively less electricity consumption, making the overall process more efficient. The findings are published in Nature Nanotechnology by a team of scientists spanning Yale University, Oregon State University and The Ohio State University.

"Methanol is a flexible chemical feedstock that is used for hundreds of common products including plastics, chemicals and solvents," says Alvin Chang, an OSU doctoral student and coauthor on the study. By improving methanol production, scientists could make it faster, cheaper and with less waste.

Methanol is being explored as a low-cost fuel for generating electricity, powering ships, supplementing gasoline for automobiles and more. In addition to using C0₂ from the atmosphere, the process could enable methanol production from plentiful agricultural and municipal waste.

Having steady access to such a versatile and renewable resource could transform many aspects of daily life, including the transportation sector, says Robert Baker, Ohio State chemistry professor and one of the study's authors.

Baker, Chang and Hailiang Wang at Yale used a unique, dual-site electrocatalyst to bring this new method to life. Catalysts in general are used to speed up the rate of chemical reactions without themselves being consumed. Electrocatalysts do the same, but with electrochemical reactions.

Compared to the single-site version, the dual-site catalyst sped up methanol production while wasting less energy during creation, reaching an electrochemical charge transfer efficiency of 50%. By comparison, the single-site catalytic method is no more than 30% efficient.

"This innovative research is an important advance toward more efficient methanol production through reduced power consumption and waste generation — and potentially a powerful tool for American manufacturing and fuel production," says Kenneth Moloy, a program director in the NSF Division of Chemistry, which supported the research.