Coupling Glucose Dehydrogenation with CO₂ Hydrogenation by Hydrogen Transfer in Aqueous Media at Room Temperature

Conversion of CO₂ into value-added chemicals and fuels provides a direct solution to reduce excessive CO₂ in the atmosphere. Herein, a novel catalytic reaction system is presented by coupling the dehydrogenation of glucose with the hydrogenation of a CO₂ -derived salt, ammonium carbonate, in an ethanol-water mixture. For the first time, the hydrogenation of CO₂ to formate by glucose has been achieved under ambient conditions. Under the optimal reaction conditions, the highest yield of formate reached approximately 46 %. We find that the apparent pH value in the ethanol-water mixture plays a central role in determining the performance of the hydrogen-transfer reaction. Based on the ¹³ C NMR and ESI-MS results, a possible pathway of the coupled glucose dehydrogenation and CO₂ hydrogenation reactions was proposed.