Bao Xin and the academician team of the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have made important achievements. Based on the new concept of "nano confined catalysis", the team creatively constructed a silicide lattice confined single center iron catalyst, successfully achieving selective activation of methane under anaerobic conditions, and efficiently producing high-value chemicals such as ethylene, aromatics, and hydrogen in one step. This achievement provides a new approach for the direct conversion of natural gas to ethylene and high-value chemicals.

       The selective activation and directed conversion of methane molecules is a global challenge, known as the "Holy Grail" in the fields of catalysis and even chemistry. After more than 20 years of research on methane catalytic conversion, Bao Xin and his team have solved this problem. Compared with the traditional route of natural gas conversion, the new technology completely abandons the high-energy consuming synthesis gas preparation process, greatly shortens the process route, and the reaction process itself achieves zero emission of carbon dioxide, with a carbon atom utilization efficiency of 100%.