A new type of catalyst that uses vibrational energy to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into carbon monoxide (CO) has been developed by researchers at the University of Osaka in Japan.
The method showcases a route for CO2 conversion, offering a potential path toward future low-energy carbon recycling technologies.
According to the research team, their catalysts use mechanical energy, in this case vibration to drive chemical reactions under mild conditions.
This is different to traditional technologies, which convert CO2 to CO under high temperatures, using a large amount of energy.
CO2 is converted to CO primarily to turn a waste greenhouse gas into a valuable chemical feedstock for industrial processes and to create synthetic fuels.
The newly designed catalyst is based on barium titanate, a piezoelectric material. This is any kind of material that generates electric charges when stressed or squeezed.
Researchers placed nitrogen-doped carbon containing tiny amounts of nickel on small cubes of barium titanate. The team then applied high frequency sound waves to the material for a five hour time period at room temperature and ambient pressure.
Schematic images of piezocatalytic CO2 reduction over Ni single-atom anchored on N-doped carbon deposited on BaTiO3 ©https://doi.org/10.1039/D5TA09053A, Yoshifumi Kondo and Tohru Sekino from J. Mater. Chem. A, 2026, 14, 6858
The result was a 3.1-fold higher yield of CO compared with pristine barium titanate. No other chemicals were detected as carbon-reduction products under the tested conditions, indicating almost 100% selectivity for CO.
According to the team, the nitrogen-doped carbon helped promote charge separation and transfer, while the isolated nickel single-atom sites acted as highly active centres for CO2 reduction.
“Establishing technologies to recycle industrially emitted CO2 is essential for achieving carbon neutrality,” said Dr Yoshifumi Kondo, senior author of the study.
Typical methods of converting CO2 to CO are highly energy intensive. Solid oxide electrolysis cells convert at high temperatures (700℃ to 900℃) and the method is often used with renewable energy sources for net zero fuel production.
Electrochemical reduction uses electricity and catalysts to reduce CO2 at low temperatures, but it requires almost 5 kWh of power per kg of CO.
The newly developed catalyst may prove to be a viable alternative but it is in very early stages and has yet to be proved at scale. Also, high purity barium titanate for research can exceed $100 for small quantities (50g).
“Going forward, we hope to develop new low-energy CO2 conversion methods that make use of underutilised energy, such as mechanical vibration and waste heat,” added Kondo.
References
Source: https://doi.org/10.1039/D5TA09053A, Yoshifumi Kondo and Tohru Sekino from J. Mater. Chem. A, 2026, 14, 6858.
