Orchestrated Multi-Physics Field-Engineering Toward Valorized C2+ Chemicals from CO2/CH4
The urgent imperative for carbon-neutral chemical production has accelerated the development of solar-driven catalytic technologies that convert abundant C1 feedstocks (CO2 and CH4) into value-added C2+ molecules. Standalone photocatalysis remains constrained by rapid charge-carrier recombination and poor C–C coupling selectivity. This review critically examines multi-field-coupled catalysis—a transformative paradigm synergistically integrating solar energy with auxiliary thermal, electric, and magnetic fields. Through mechanistic dissection of photothermal, photoelectrochemical, and photomagnetic field cooperativities, it is summarized that thermal gradients attenuate phonon scattering to enhance charge-carrier drift mobility while vibrationally stabilizing reactive intermediates, electric potentials drive vectorial charge transport via Coulomb-force-directed separation and band alignment, and magnetic fields modulate spin-selective electron transfer through Zeeman splitting-mediated polarization to boost reaction specificity. This synergistic multi-field integration circumvents intrinsic limitations of single-mode photocatalysis by collectively reconfiguring reaction coordinates for selective C–C coupling. We further address persistent challenges in resolving ultrafast interfacial charge-transfer dynamics, scaling integrated field reactors for industrial deployment, and advancing in situ operando characterization of multiscale processes. Strategic research priorities are proposed to advance sustainable multi-field-coupled catalytic production of fuels and platform chemicals.