SiC ‐promoted Cu/ ZnO catalysts for efficient CO ₂ hydrogenation to methanol: Mediating role of Cu δ + species

Promoter engineering represents a versatile and effective strategy for enhancing the performance of Cu/ZnO‐based catalysts in CO 2 hydrogenation to methanol, with most studies concentrating on metal‐based promoters. This work introduces silicon carbide (SiC) as a non‐metal promoter to fabricate a series of Cu/ZnO/SiC‐ x catalysts (where x = 9/1, 5/5, and 1/9 denotes the ZnO/SiC mass ratio). Significantly, the Cu/ZnO/SiC‐5/5 catalyst demonstrated superior catalytic performance, achieving a space‐time yield of methanol twofold higher than the conventional Cu/ZnO catalyst at 250°C. Structural characterizations reveal that SiC incorporation increased specific surface area, generated positively charged Cu species (Cu δ + , 0 < δ < 1), enhanced metal‐support interactions, and enriched medium basic sites. Mechanism studies indicate that SiC promotes Cu δ + formation and modulates the interfacial structure, thereby facilitating intermediate conversion. This work develops an efficient SiC‐promoted Cu/ZnO catalyst for CO 2 hydrogenation to methanol and provides mechanistic insights into non‐metal promotional effects in heterogeneous catalysis.