Integrating hydroformylations with methanol-to-syngas reforming

Abstract

Commodity chemical production is heavily dependent on fossil feedstocks. Transitioning to renewable resources is a pressing necessity, with green methanol being a promising candidate for rethinking chemical platforms. Here, we report how interlocking methanol-to-syngas reforming and hydroformylation of olefins may integrate methanol as a platform for accessing renewable oxo-products. This study demonstrates the importance of interlocking kinetics and selectivity of a ruthenium-catalyzed acceptorless dehydrogenation and a rhodium-catalyzed hydroformylation. Notably, coal- or natural gas-derived syngas can be substituted with fuel-grade e-methanol obtained from captured CO₂ and green hydrogen. Although these conditions do not replicate large-scale industrial settings, we consider this dual-catalysis approach a proof of concept illustrating the potential to synthesize oxo-products entirely from CO₂-derived methanol. We envision that redesigning chemical value chains to extend from renewable platforms like methanol could play a pivotal role toward establishing a more sustainable chemical industry.