Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 20, 2025

Developing Photosensitizer-Cobaloxime Hybrids for Solar-Driven H2 Production in Aqueous Aerobic Conditions
Published on: October 5, 2019
Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction Using a Robust Multifunctional Iridium Complex toward the Selective Formation of Formic
Kenji Kamada1, Jieun Jung1, Taku Wakabayashi1
1Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya 464-8602, Japan.
Abstract:
A highly efficient tetradentate PNNP-type Ir photocatalyst, Mes-IrPCY2, was developed for the reduction of carbon dioxide. The photocatalyst furnished formic acid (HCO2H) with 87% selectivity together with carbon monoxide to achieve a turnover number of 2560, which is the highest among CO2 reduction photocatalysts without an additional photosensitizer. Mes-IrPCY2 exhibited outstanding photocatalytic CO2 reduction activity in the presence of the sacrificial electron source 1,3-dimethyl-2-phenyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-benzo[d]imidazole (BIH) in CO2-saturated N,N-dimethylacetamide under irradiation with visible light. The quantum yield was determined to be 49% for the generation of HCO2H and CO. Electron paramagnetic resonance and UV-vis spectroscopy studies of Mes-IrPCY2 with a sacrificial electron donor revealed that the one-electron-reduced species is the key intermediate for the selective formation of HCO2H.
Related Concept Videos
Acid Halides to Alcohols: LiAlH4 Reduction
The mechanism proceeds in three steps. First, the nucleophilic hydride ion attacks the carbonyl carbon of the acid halide to form a tetrahedral intermediate. Next, the carbonyl group is re-formed, and the halide ion departs as a leaving group, generating an aldehyde. A second nucleophilic attack by the hydride yields an alkoxide ion, which, upon protonation, gives a primary alcohol as...
Reduction of Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Metals like palladium, platinum, and nickel are commonly used in their solid forms — fine powder on an inert surface. As these catalysts remain insoluble in the reaction mixture, they are referred to as heterogeneous catalysts.
The hydrogenation process takes place on the...
Reduction of Alkenes: Asymmetric Catalytic Hydrogenation
The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...
Thermal and Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Overview
Reduction of Alkynes to cis-Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Like alkenes, alkynes can be reduced to alkanes in the presence of transition metal catalysts such as Pt, Pd, or Ni. The reaction involves two sequential syn additions of hydrogen via a cis-alkene intermediate.
Cycloaddition Reactions: MO Requirements for Photochemical Activation

