The electronic interaction of encapsulating graphene layers with FeCo alloy promotes efficient CO2 Hydrogenation to light olefins

CO 2 hydrogenation to value-added light olefins (C 2–4 = ) is crucial for the utilization and cycling of global carbon resource. Moderate CO 2 activation and carbon chain growth ability are key factors for iron-based catalysts for efficient CO 2 conversion to target C 2–4 = products. The electronic interaction and confinement effect of electron-deficient graphene inner surface on the active phase are effective to improve surface chemical properties and enhance the catalytic performance. Here, we report a core-shell FeCo alloy catalyst with graphene layers confinement prepared by a simple sol-gel method. The electron transfer from Fe species to curved graphene inner surface modifies the surface electronic structure of the active phase χ-(Fe x Co 1– x ) 5 C 2 and improves CO 2 adsorption capacity, enhancing the efficient conversion of CO 2 and moderate C-C coupling. Therefore, the catalyst FeCoK@C exhibits C 2–4 = selectivity of 33.0% while maintaining high CO 2 conversion of 52.0%. The high stability without obvious deactivation for over 100 h and unprecedented C 2–4 = space time yield (STY) up to 52.9 mmol CO2 ·g –1 ·h –1 demonstrate its potential for practical application. This work provides an efficient strategy for the development of high-performance CO 2 hydrogenation catalysts.