From Single Metal to Bimetallic Sites: Enhanced Higher Hydrocarbons Yield of CO₂ Hydrogenation over Bimetallic Catalysts

Massive CO₂ emission has led to a series of ecological and environmental problems. Sustainable conversion and utilization of CO₂ is one of the focuses of today‘s society. However, the inertness of CO₂ molecules and weak chain growth ability limit the efficient utilization of CO₂. Herein, different from conventional Fe-based catalysts, a series of bimetallic catalysts (FeCo) were prepared to investigate the effects of cobalt species existence on catalytic yield of CO₂ hydrogenation. The existence of cobalt promotes the formation of small-size iron carbides. Meanwhile, a suitable surface composition of Co (2.4 at. %) and Fe (7.4 at. %) element is helpful to promote the selective generation of C₂₊ products, thus presenting a high yield (Co/Fe@C-8). This study can provide a systematic guidance to the utilization of high-efficiently bimetallic catalysts for higher hydrocarbon formation with high yield from CO₂.