Copper-zinc-alumina catalysts are used industrially for methanol synthesis from feedstock containing carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. The high performance of the catalyst stems from synergies that develop between its components. This important catalytic system has been investigated with a myriad of approaches, however, no comprehensive agreement on the fundamental source of its high activity has been reached. One potential source of disagreement is the considerable variation in pressure used in studies to understand a process that is performed industrially at pressures above 20 bar. Here, by systematically studying the catalyst state during temperature-programmed reduction and under carbon dioxide hydrogenation with in situ and operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy over four orders of magnitude in pressure, we show how the state and evolution of the catalyst is defined by its environment. The structure of the catalyst shows a strong pressure dependence, especially below 1 bar. As pressure gaps are a general problem in catalysis, these observations have wide-ranging ramifications.

铜-锌-氧化铝催化剂在工业上用于从含有一氧化碳和二氧化碳的原料合成甲醇。催化剂的高性能源于其组分之间产生的协同作用。这一重要的催化体系已经通过多种方法进行了研究，然而，尚未就其高活性的基本来源达成全面共识。一个潜在的分歧来源是研究中使用的压力的相当大的变化，以了解在高于 20 bar 的压力下进行的工业过程。在这里，通过在四个数量级的压力下，通过原位和操作 X 射线吸收光谱系统地研究程序升温还原和二氧化碳加氢过程中的催化剂状态，我们展示了催化剂的状态和演变如何由其环境定义。催化剂的结构显示出强烈的压力依赖性，尤其是低于 1 bar。由于压力间隙是催化中的一个普遍问题，因此这些观察具有广泛的影响。