Direct Catalytic Methanol-to-Ethanol Photo-conversion via Methyl Carbene

Abstract

A photo-driven direct methanol-to-ethanol conversion is reported with a robust gallium nitride catalyst under ambient conditions. This conversion is achieved with no solvent, ligand, additive, heating, atmosphere, or pressurization-just with light irradiation. A methyl carbene reaction intermediate is observed during the conversion, and the method enables access to the more useful (as both fuel and starting material) renewable resource ethanol.

Highly Selective Production of Ethanol Over Hierarchical Bi@Bi2MoO6 Composite via Bicarbonate‐Assisted Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction

“…Meanwhile, the presence of HCO 3 − ions can not only significantly decrease the reduction potential for formation ethanol but also facilitate the formation of carbene (:CO 2 H − /:CH 2 ) intermediates at the surface oxygen defect sites [23] . Then, the C−C coupling between carbene intermediate and generated CH 3 OH allows to obtain the C 2 H 5 OH and high product selectivity [24] . Benefiting from oxygen vacancies and Bi nanoparticles, the more negative CB position of Bi@Bi 2 MoO 6 (−0.78 eV) brings the ability to directly reduce CO 2 molecules with adsorption on the surface of the catalyst into ethanol.…”

Emerging Applications of III‐Nitride Nanocrystals

“…[140] Very recently, using Sn and binary Cu-Ir as the cocatalysts, high Faradaic efficiency values of 77% for HCOOH formation and 51% for methane production have been reported, respectively. [141,142] Nanoscale III-nitrides have also been used for the synthesis of "green" ammonia [143] and ethanol [144] through light-driven chemical reactions.…”

Nitromethane as a nitrogen donor in Schmidt-type formation of amides and nitriles

“…Ideally, if one bulk and common chemical could be activated and endowed with new reactivity (26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35), it would promote synthetic innovation and industrial development. Because of the strongly electron-withdrawing properties of the nitro group, nitromethane has often been used as a carbon pronucleophile in transformations such as the traditional Henry or nitroaldol reactions (36,37), crossdehydrogenative coupling reactions (38), and 1 of 5 Michael addition reactions (39) (Fig.…”