Oxygen vacancies generated by Sn-doped ZrO(2) promoting the synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from methanol and CO(2)

Oxygen vacancy sites on a catalyst surface have been extensively studied and been proved to promote the adsorption and activation of carbon dioxide. We use Sn-doped ZrO(2) to prepare a Zr/Sn catalyst rich in oxygen vacancies (OVs) by co-precipitation. The yield of dimethyl carbonate is 5 times that of ZrO(2). Compared with the original ZrO(2), Zr/Sn exhibits a higher specific surface area, number of acid–base sites and a lower band gap, which improves the conductivity of electrons and creates more surface. The number of reaction sites greatly enhances the adsorption and activation capacity of CO(2) molecules on the catalyst surface. In situ infrared spectroscopy shows that CO(2) adsorbs on oxygen vacancies to form monomethyl carbonate, and participates in the reaction as an intermediate species. This work provides new clues for the preparation of ZrO(2)-based catalysts rich in oxygen vacancies to directly catalyze the synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from methanol and CO(2).