Capture and Utilization of CO₂ with Morpholine for Effective Photocatalytic N-Formylmorpholine Production

Converting into high-value-added products represents the most optimal approach to CO₂ utilization. The substitution of CO with CO₂ as a potential critical material for formamide production is widely regarded as an ideal pathway and has garnered significant attention. However, high temperatures and pressures remain essential for the reaction, exerting a substantial influence on the utilization process. Herein, N-formylmorpholine was creatively synthesized by integrating the capture and solar-driven utilization of CO₂ with morpholine. Notably, a remarkable N-formylmorpholine yield of 11433.3 μmol·h^-1·g^-1 was obtained, surpassing pure MoO₃ by an astounding factor of 89.1 with a N-formylmorpholine yield of 63.8 μmol in 6 h, which is an astonishing increase of 57.5 times compared to MoO₃. Both experimental results and density functional theory calculations suggest that the inclusion of Fe can effectively reduce the formation energy barrier while facilitating the desorption process of N-formylmorpholine, thereby optimizing the overall performance.