For much of the past century, carbon dioxide (CO2) has received little attention scientifically outside of its role as a byproduct in the industrialization of the global economy. This trend has recently been upended where, due to mounting environmental concerns, CO2 has been brought squarely into the public consciousness. This surge in activity has contributed to a once unimaginable idea now pervading the scientific community: could CO2, a highly stable byproduct of hydrocarbon combustion, be recycled and converted back into useful chemicals and fuels? Owing to its ubiquitous nature and availability at truly massive quantities, it is thought that CO2-based products could offer a meaningful pathway toward lowering the environmental impact of many of the top industrial products while also enhancing supply chain diversification and resilience. In this manuscript we provide a holistic review of the pathways for CO2 conversion, the underlying chemistry and challenges involved in the transformation to products, and considerations for commercialization.
Grim et al. (Tue,) studied this question.