Grave-to-cradle upcycling of Ni from electroplating wastewater to photothermal CO(2) catalysis

Treating hazardous waste Ni from the electroplating industry is mandated world-wide, is exceptionally expensive, and carries a very high CO(2) footprint. Rather than regarding Ni as a disposable waste, the chemicals and petrochemicals industries could instead consider it a huge resource. In the work described herein, we present a strategy for upcycling waste Ni from electroplating wastewater into a photothermal catalyst for converting CO(2) to CO. Specifically, magnetic nanoparticles encapsulated in amine functionalized porous SiO(2), is demonstrated to efficiently scavenge Ni from electroplating wastewater for utilization in photothermal CO(2) catalysis. The core-shell catalyst architecture produces CO at a rate of 1.9 mol·g(Ni)(−1)·h(−1) (44.1 mmol·g(cat)(−1)·h(−1)), a selectivity close to 100%, and notable long-term stability. This strategy of upcycling metal waste into functional, catalytic materials offers a multi-pronged approach for clean and renewable energy technologies.