Light-driven reforming of methane through photothermal catalysis

Li, X. Y., Wang, C. & Tang, J. W. Methane transformation by photocatalysis. Nat. Rev. Mater. 7, 617–632 (2022).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Duan, H. M. et al. Catalytic combustion of methane over noble metal catalysts. ACS Catal. 14, 17972–17992 (2024).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Xie, J. J. et al. Methane oxidation to ethanol by a molecular junction photocatalyst. Nature 639, 368–374 (2025).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Zhang, W. Q. et al. High-performance photocatalytic nonoxidative conversion of methane to ethane and hydrogen by heteroatoms-engineered TiO2. Nat. Commun. 13, 2806 (2022).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Song, S. et al. A selective Au-ZnO/TiO2 hybrid photocatalyst for oxidative coupling of methane to ethane with dioxygen. Nat. Catal. 4, 1032–1042 (2021).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Wang, Y. F., Qi, M. Y., Conte, M., Tang, Z. R. & Xu, Y. J. Bimetallic single atom/nanoparticle ensemble for efficient photochemical cascade synthesis of ethylene from methane. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 63, 202407791 (2024).

Article  Google Scholar 

Ma, Y. J. et al. Direct conversion of methane to ethylene and acetylene over an iron-based metal-organic framework. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 145, 20792–20800 (2023).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Li, Q., Ouyang, Y. X., Li, H. L., Wang, L. B. & Zeng, J. Photocatalytic conversion of methane: recent advancements and prospects. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 61, e202108069 (2022).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Wang, P., Shi, R., Zhao, J. Q. & Zhang, T. R. Photodriven methane conversion on transition metal oxide vatalyst: recent progress and prospects. Adv. Sci. 11, 2305471 (2024).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Zhang, H. T., Sun, Z. X. & Hu, Y. H. Steam reforming of methane: current states of catalyst design and process upgrading. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 149, 111330 (2021).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Zhu, Q. Y. et al. Enhanced CO2 utilization in dry reforming of methane achieved through nickel-mediated hydrogen spillover in zeolite crystals. Nat. Catal. 5, 1030–1037 (2022).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Tavasoli, A. et al. Enhanced hybrid photocatalytic dry reforming using a phosphated Ni–CeO2 nanorod heterostructure. Nat. Commun. 14, 1435 (2023).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Hermesmann, M. & Müller, T. E. Green, turquoise, blue, or grey? Environmentally friendly hydrogen production in transforming energy systems. Prog. Energy Combust. Sci. 90, 100996 (2022).

Article  Google Scholar 

Akri, M. et al. Atomically dispersed nickel as coke-resistant active sites for methane dry reforming. Nat. Commun. 10, 5181 (2019).

Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Sun, X. D. et al. Solar energy catalysis. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 61, e202204880 (2022).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Song, H., Meng, X. G., Wang, Z. J., Liu, H. M. & Ye, J. H. Solar-energy-mediated methane conversion. Joule 3, 1606–1636 (2019).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Zhao, J. Q. et al. NiFe nanoalloys derived from layered double hydroxides for photothermal synergistic reforming of CH4 with CO2. Adv. Funct. Mater. 32, 2204056 (2022).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Shoji, S. et al. Photocatalytic uphill conversion of natural gas beyond the limitation of thermal reaction systems. Nat. Catal. 3, 148–153 (2020).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Gong, K. et al. Constructing MgAlOx-CuRu-CeO2 heterostructures for enhanced low-temperature photothermal dry reforming of methane. ACS Catal. 15, 15302–15314 (2025).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Zhou, Q. et al. Selective photocatalytic oxidation of methane to methanol by constructing a rapid O2 conversion pathway over Au-Pd/ZnO. ACS Catal. 14, 955–964 (2024).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Zhang, J. Q., Chen, H. J., Duan, X. G., Sun, H. Q. & Wang, S. B. Photothermal catalysis: from fundamentals to practical applications. Mater. Today 68, 234–253 (2023).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Fang, S. Y. & Hu, Y. H. Thermo-photo catalysis: a whole greater than the sum of its parts. Chem. Soc. Rev. 51, 3609–3647 (2022).

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Jin, H. G. et al. Metal-organic frameworks for organic transformations by photocatalysis and photothermal catalysis. Chem. Soc. Rev. 53, 9378–9418 (2024).

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Ghoussoub, M., Xia, M. K., Duchesne, P. N., Segal, D. & Ozin, G. Principles of photothermal gas-phase heterogeneous CO2 catalysis. Energy Environ. Sci. 12, 1122–1142 (2019).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Mateo, D., Cerrillo, J. L., Durini, S. & Gascon, J. Fundamentals and applications of photo-thermal catalysis. Chem. Soc. Rev. 50, 2173–2210 (2021).

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Song, C. Q., Wang, Z. H., Yin, Z., Xiao, D. Q. & Ma, D. Principles and applications of photothermal catalysis. Chem Catal. 2, 52–83 (2022).

CAS  Google Scholar 

Luo, S. Q., Ren, X. H., Lin, H. W., Song, H. & Ye, J. H. Plasmonic photothermal catalysis for solar-to-fuel conversion: current status and prospects. Chem. Sci. 12, 5701–5719 (2021).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Xie, B. Q. et al. Heterogeneous catalysis via light-heat dual activation: a path to the breakthrough in C1 chemistry. Joule 8, 312–333 (2024).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Yang, R. et al. Photothermal methane dry reforming: catalyst architectures, mechanistic pathways, and future challenges. Chem. Soc. Rev. 54, 11017–11060 (2025).

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Ramos-Fernandez, E. V. et al. Photothermal catalysts, light and heat management: from materials design to performance evaluation. Adv. Energy Mater. 15, 2405272 (2025).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Xu, C., Tang, Q. J., Tu, W. G. & Wang, L. Photon and phonon powered photothermal catalysis. Energy Environ. Sci. 17, 4461–4480 (2024).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Chen, R. & Weng, G. M. Sustainable energy resources for driving methane conversion. Adv. Energy Mater. 13, 202301734 (2023).

Article  Google Scholar 

Kamran, K. & Tahir, M. Photothermal dry reforming of methane: a comprehensive review of synergistic interactions among thermal, photonic, catalytic, and reactor engineering with their techno-economic aspects. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 64, 15171–15204 (2025).

Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Liu, S. et al. Quantifying the distinct role of plasmon enhancement mechanisms in prototypical antenna-reactor photocatalysts. Nat. Commun. 16, 2245 (2025).

Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Zhou, L. A. et al. Quantifying hot carrier and thermal contributions in plasmonic photocatalysis. Science 362, 69–72 (2018).

Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Hisatomi, T., Yamada, T., Nishiyama, H., Takata, T. & Domen, K. Materials and systems for large-scale photocatalytic water splitting. Nat. Rev. Mater. 10, 769–782 (2025).

Article 

Comments (0)

No login
gif