Light-enabled coupling of tandem ethane dehydrogenation and CO2 hydrogenation

The integration of electromagnetic energy into a thermal reaction is beneficial in catalytic performance and product distribution. To date, such a photothermal strategy has mainly been applied to relatively low-temperature reactions, such as CO2 hydrogenation, and its application to high-temperature reactions has yet to be explored. Herein, electromagnetic energy is successfully introduced into a tandem ethane dehydrogenation and CO2 hydrogenation system over a Zn-based catalyst. According to the experiments and theoretical simulations, light enables a new reverse water-gas shift reaction, which consumes the produced H2 and thus right shifts the ethane dehydrogenation reaction and enhances the catalytic performance. The resulting ethylene rate could achieve 11.5 mmol g−1 h−1 with a selectivity of 96%, and the estimated external quantum efficiency is up to 18.85% under weak light intensity (2 sun). In the meantime, the ethylene rate could be improved by about 600-fold with higher light intensities.