New Directions to Development of Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Both the problems of the global warming and shortage of the fossil resources have brought us great interests in photochemical utilization of CO₂ with solar energy. Efficient photocatalysts for CO₂ reduction must be necessary for development of such an important technology.

We have developed novel types of photocatalysts using metal complexes as key players in not only homogeneous solutions but also in heterogeneous systems including semiconductor photocatalysts. In this presentation, I will mainly discuss about two recent topics; (1) photocatalytic CO₂ reduction using water as a reductant (Scheme) and (2) CO₂ reduction photocatalytic systems consisting of only earth-abundant elements.