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

Productivity for the hydrogenation of CO 2 to formic acid was increased with the addition of catalytic amounts of KHCO 3 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.