CO₂ conversion to formamide using a fluoride catalyst and metallic silicon as a reducing agent

Metallic silicon could be an inexpensive, alternative reducing agent for CO₂ functionalization compared to conventionally used hydrogen or hydrosilanes. Here, metallic silicon recovered from solar panel production is used as a reducing agent for formamide synthesis. Various amines are converted to their corresponding amides with CO₂ and H₂O via an Si-H intermediate species in the presence of a catalytic amount of tetrabutylammonium fluoride. The reaction system exhibits a wide substrate scope for formamide synthesis. Spectroscopic analysis, including in situ Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N₂ adsorption/desorption analyses, and isotopic experiments reveal that the fluoride catalyst effectively oxidizes Si atoms on both surface and interior of the powdered silicon particles. The solid recovered after catalysis contained mesopores with a high surface area. This unique behavior of the fluoride catalyst in the presence of metallic silicon may be extendable to other reductive reactions, including those with complex substrates. Therefore, this study presents a potential strategy for the efficient utilization of abundant resources.