In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of recent progress in Fe-based catalysts for the hydrogenation of CO₂ to higher alcohols (C₂+OH). As global efforts to reduce carbon emissions intensify, the catalytic conversion of CO₂ into value-added fuels and chemicals has emerged as a promising strategy for carbon utilization. Among various catalytic systems, Fe-based catalysts stand out because of their low cost, excellent CO₂ activation capability, and intrinsic ability to promote carbon-chain growth through the synergistic reverse water–gas shift (RWGS) and Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) pathways. Our analysis highlights how catalyst design, promoter engineering, and support modification can significantly improve higher-alcohol selectivity and catalytic stability.

Key Insights

• Fe-based catalysts are leading candidates for CO₂-to-alcohol conversion: Their strong CO₂ activation ability and unique capacity for C–C coupling make them highly attractive for higher alcohol synthesis.
• Bimetallic promotion is highly effective: The incorporation of Co, Pd, Cu, and other metals can regulate Fe active phases, optimize electronic structures, and improve intermediate conversion efficiency.
• Fe-Co alloy carbides demonstrated exceptional performance: Fe-Co catalysts achieved up to 51.1% CO₂ conversion and 49.1% higher alcohol selectivity, while maintaining stability for more than 1,000 hours.
• PdFe alloy–Fe₅C₂ interfaces create synergistic active sites: These interfaces facilitate CO generation, CO dissociation, and carbon-chain propagation, resulting in enhanced higher-alcohol production and catalyst durability.
• Alkali promoters play a key regulatory role: Na, K, and Cs modify the electronic properties of Fe active sites, balancing CO activation, hydrogenation, and C–C coupling to favor higher alcohol formation over hydrocarbons.
• Support engineering is equally important: Metal oxides, carbon materials, and zeolites can regulate active-site dispersion, electronic transfer, oxygen-vacancy formation, and reaction pathways.
• Carbon-based electron-buffer layers enhance ethanol synthesis: Optimized charge redistribution among ZnOx, Fe₅C₂, and Fe₃O₄ phases significantly increases ethanol productivity and catalyst stability.
• Zeolite-supported systems offer long-term opportunities: Their confinement effects and tunable acidity provide unique advantages, although metal-support interactions and promoter migration remain challenges.

Significance of This Work

In this review, we highlight how metal promoters, support materials, and active-phase engineering work together to enhance the performance of Fe-based catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation to higher alcohols. We show that rational catalyst design can improve CO₂ activation, C–C coupling, product selectivity, and catalyst stability. [News in English | Word]

We also identify key challenges—including limited alcohol selectivity, catalyst deactivation, and incomplete mechanistic understanding—and outline future opportunities in promoter-support synergy and advanced catalyst design. These insights provide a roadmap for developing efficient technologies that convert captured CO₂ into sustainable fuels and value-added chemicals.

Authors & Affiliations

Zexiu Yu, Peng Wang*, Thachapan Atchimarungsri, Lizhi Wu, Fan Bo, Xingang Li*, Hua Yang, and Li Tan*

Affiliations

• State Key Laboratory of Green and Efficient Development of Phosphorus Resources, College of Chemistry, School of Future Technology, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350108, China.
• The International Joint Institute of Tianjin University, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China.
• Chongqing Vocational Institute of Safety Technology, Chongqing 404020, China.

Corresponding Authors

Prof. Peng Wang
✉ p_wang@fzu.edu.cn

Prof. Xingang Li
✉ xingang_li@tju.edu.cn

Prof. Li Tan
✉ tan@fzu.edu.cn

How to Cite This Article

Yu, Z. et al. (2026). Advances in Fe-based catalysts for the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide toward higher alcohols. Catal, 2, 16.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s44422-026-00029-7