Dihydrogen Production Process

A process fey of producing dihydrogen from formic acid, wherein formic acid is brought into contact:

• with at least one catalyst
• (i) said catalyst being a Lewis acid selected from
• organic or inorganic boron compounds selected from BF3, BF3(Et2O), BCl3, diphenyl hydroborane, dicyclohexyl hydroborane, chlorodicyclohexylborane, 9-iodo-9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (BBNI), B-chlorocatecholborane, B(C6F5)3, B-methoxy-9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane (B-methoxy-9-BBN), B-benzyl-9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane, Me-TBD-BBN+I−, Me-TBD-BBN+CF3SO3−, (TDB-BBN)2, TBD-BBN-CO2, TBD-BBN-BBN, [TBDH+ BBN(OCHO)2−], [Et3NH+Cy2B(OCHO)2−];
• organic or inorganic silicon compounds selected from SiCl4, Me3SiCl, Et3Si+and Me3Si+;
• divalent or tetravalent organic or inorganic germanium compounds selected from GeCl2, GeBr2, GeCl4, Ge(OEt2)4, Me3GeCl, Me2ClGe+, Et3Ge+and Me3Ge+;
• organic or inorganic tin compounds with oxidation state +IV or +II selected from SnCl2, SnCl4, nBu2SnCl2, Cy3SnCl, Bu3SnH, tBu2SnCl2, nBuSnCl3, Me2SnCl, SnBu4, tetraisopropoxystannane, tetrakis(acetyloxy)stannane, Me3SnCl, Et3Sn+and Me3Sn+;
• oxoniums selected from (CH3)3O+and (CH3CH2)3O+;
• carbocations selected from the trityl cation ((C6H5)3C+), tropylium (C7H7)+, the benzyl cation (C6H5CH2+), allyl cation (CH3—CH+—CH═CH2), methylium (CH3+) and cyclopropylium (C3H5+);
• with the anionic counterion of the silylium cations, oxoniums, carbocations, stannic cations and germanium cations being a halide selected from F−, Cl−, Br− and I−, or an anion selected from BF4−, SbF6−, B(C6F5)4−, B(C6H5)4−, CF3SO3− or TfO− and P F6−;
• with at least one compound selected from
• (ii) an organic base selected from nitrogen-containing organic bases, phosphorus-containing organic bases, carbon-containing bases, and oxygen-containing organic bases;
• and/or
• (iii) a halide salt.