More information: Wei Xiong et al, Active copper structures in ZnO–Cu interfacial catalysis: CO2 hydrogenation to methanol and reverse water–gas shift reactions, Science China Chemistry (2023).

Methanol is metabolized into the natural gas methane by many microbes living under Earth’s surface, but its source has been unclear. It emerges that some bacteria convert formate molecules into ...

However, while it is still selective in the first step, the reaction path then branches out and up to 16 different products are formed, not necessarily methanol. The situation is different with ...