Efficient methanol upcycling to ethylene glycol and glycolaldehyde via divergent C-C coupling synthesis.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41698933.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-026-69656-x and PMC identifier 13022205.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
- Because redistribution is not established, this page shows the abstract only. Follow the links below for the full text.
Abstract
Direct photocatalytic conversion of methanol into high-value multi-carbon chemicals through precisely controlled C - C coupling represents an extremely appealing but challenging goal. Herein, we demonstrate the efficient photoredox-driven dehydrocoupling of methanol into divergent synthesis of ethylene glycol and glycolaldehyde concomitantly with H<sub>2</sub> production by structural regulation of atomically dispersed Ni species. We showcase distinctly different reaction pathway for divergent C - C coupling of methanol over two types of atomically dispersed Ni cocatalyst-decorated SiO quantum dots, namely those with single Ni atoms (Ni<sub>1</sub>-SiO/SiO<sub>2</sub>) and Ni clusters (Ni<sub>n</sub>-CdS/SiO<sub>2</sub>). The Ni<sub>1</sub>-CdS/SiO<sub>2</sub> generates ethylene glycol with 90% selectivity by a radical homo-coupling pathway, whereas the Ni<sub>n</sub>-CdS/SiO<sub>2</sub> achieves 96% selectivity towards glycolaldehyde by a radical addition-elimination pathway. This work not only offers a fascinating nonpetroleum route for the divergent C-C coupling synthesis of ethylene glycol and glycolaldehyde but also underscores the broad vista of modulating non-selective radicals toward selective transformation of methanol into multi-carbon products.