CARBON DIOXIDE FUNCTIONALIZATION BY INNOVATIVE COOPERATIVE MATERIALS BASED ON METALLIC CLUSTERS

THIS PROJECT AIMS TO DEVELOP AN INNOVATIVE CATALYTIC STRATEGY FOR THE VALORIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE INTO RENEWABLE FUELS AND FEEDSTOCKS. OUR CURRENT INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION BASED ON FOSSIL FUELS ENTAILS A CONTINUOUS INCREASE IN THE CONCENTRATION OF ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE, WHOSE ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES ARE STILL UNKNOWN. WE PLAN TO INVESTIGATE THE REDUCTION OF CARBON DIOXIDE TO METHANOL (RENEWABLE FUEL AND FEEDSTOCK), AS WELL AS ITS COUPLING WITH ETHYLENE TO PRODUCE ACRYLIC ACID (MAIN COMPONENT OF NUMEROUS PLASTICS AND FIBERS). ADDITIONALLY, THIS PROJECT WILL EXPLORE THE DESIGN OF PHOTOCATALYTIC VERSIONS OF OUR PROPOSED MATERIALS FOR CO2 REDUCTION, AS WELL AS THE USE OF CARBON DIOXIDE UNDER SUPERCRITICAL CONDITIONS. WITH ALL THIS IN MIND WE PROPOSE AN ORIGINAL AND GENERAL STRATEGY IN THE INTERPHASE BETWEEN HOMOGENEOUS AND HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSIS BASED ON THE DESIGN OF SUPRAMOLECULAR INTERCLUSTER COMPOUNDS, THAT IS, COMBINATIONS OF AT LEAST TWO DIFFERENT METALLIC CLUSTERS ASSEMBLED IN THE SOLID STATE BY MEANS OF SUPRAMOLECULAR INTERACTIONS. THESE HETEROGENEIZED SYSTEMS WOULD COMBINE MANY OF THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES OF HETEROGENEOUS MATERIALS (SEPARATION, RECYCLING, ROBUSTNESS, STABILITY, POROSITY) WHIT THOSE OF HOMOGENEOUS COUNTERPARTS (SELECTIVE AND RATIONAL DESIGN, MECHANISTIC STUDIES, CHIRAL CATALYSIS). THIS WIDE VARIETY OF FEATURES IS PARTICULARLY WELL SUITED FOR THE APPLICATION OF OUR PROPOSED COOPERATIVE MATERIALS TOWARDS THE FUNCTIONALIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE. OVERALL, THIS IS AN INNOVATIVE PROPOSAL BASED ON THE UNPRECEDENTED USE OF INTERCLUSTER MATERIALS AS HETEROGENEIZED CATALYSTS THAT, IN PRINCIPLE, WILL OFFER AN INFINITE NUMBER OF STILL UNEXPLORED POSSIBILITIES. THE EFFICIENT IMPLEMENTATION OF THESE MATERIALS FOR THE FUNCTIONALIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE WOULD HAVE A TREMENDOUS ENVIRONMENTAL, ECONOMIC AND SOCIETAL IMPACT.