Enhanced Carbon Dioxide Hydrogenation Facilitated by Catalytic Quantities of Bicarbonate and Other Inorganic Salts

Productivity for the hydrogenation of CO2 to formic acid was increased with the addition of catalytic amounts of KHCO3 and other common inorganic salts. Mechanistic experiments revealed that the reaction likely proceeds via the formation of a metal–carbonate species. The effect was general for many noble-metal catalysts and for one of the most efficient non-noble-metal hydrogenation catalysts.