Mn‐doped CeO2 derived from Ce-MOF porous nanoribbons as highly active catalysts for the synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from CO2 and methanol

It is desirable but challenging to develop highly-efficient catalysts for the direct synthesis of dimethyl carbonate (DMC) from methanol and CO 2 . The vacancy-mediated incorporation of heteroatom into surface reconstruction is an efficient method of defect engineering for enhancing the catalytic properties. In this work, manganese-doped cerium oxide porous nanoribbons (Mn/CeO 2 -BTC) were prepared derived from a Ce-BTC by a sacrificial template approach. It is found that the catalytic activity of Mn/CeO 2 -BTC catalysts can be readily controlled by varying the amount of Mn dopants and the as-synthesized 0.1-Mn/CeO 2 -BTC exhibited an outstanding activity for the synthesis of DMC from CO 2 and methanol, which reached a high DMC yield (6.53 mmol DMC /g cat. ) without any dehydrating agents. Based on characterization results, the enhanced performance may be attributed to the defective structures caused by Mn doping and the porous nanoribbons of the CeO 2 crystals, which provide more surface oxygen vacancies and acidic-basic sites, favoring adsorption and activation of CO 2 and methanol.