Efficient rhenium-catalyzed photochemical carbon dioxide reduction under high pressure

The photocatalytic reduction of CO2-to-CO was carried out under high pressure with [fac-Re(bpy)(CO)3Cl] (bpy=2,2′-bipyridine) as the catalyst. The use of high-pressure CO2 gas was much more effective than the addition of excess Cl− ions for increasing the stability of the catalyst and achieving efficient CO formation. The turnover number for CO formation at 2.45 MPa of CO2 reached a maximum of 41.8, which was 5.1 times the turnover number for the conventional normal-pressure system.