Ultradispersed Mo/TiO catalysts for CO hydrogenation to methanol

Mo/TiO 2 catalysts with atomic dispersion of molybdenum appear active and stable in the gas-phase hydrogenation of CO 2 . A comparison between various titania materials shows a crucial effect of the support surface structure on the methanol yield. Molybdenum supported at low coverage on rutile titania nanorods is the most active and methanol-selective system. From catalyst characterization by aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy, near-ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, diffuse reflectance UV-vis spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed techniques, we suggest that the most active catalysts for methanol production involve ultradispersed molybdate species with high reducibility and strong interaction with the rutile support. Molybdenum species highly dispersed on selected titania materials catalyse CO 2 hydrogenation to methanol.