Demonstration of the photothermal catalysis of the Sabatier reaction using nickel nanoparticles and solar spectrum light.

The promise of light-to-chemical energy conversion has led researchers to explore photo-thermal processes for chemical reactivity of nanoparticles. Previous work has examined particles as an element of a supported catalyst, but not as an unsupported nanopowder. We present a preliminary examination of a photo-thermal Sabatier reaction performed on suspended Ni nanoparticles. This new system performs a catalytic Sabatier reaction at lower bulk temperatures than reported for a standard reaction, driven by light. This result occurs only when the particles are suspended freely in a gaseous mixture; implying that particle isolation enhances photo-thermal catalysis.