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Wang Z, Li Y, Ma Z, Wang D, Ren X. Strategies for overcoming challenges in selective electrochemical CO 2 conversion to ethanol. iScience 2024; 27:110437. [PMID: 39114499 PMCID: PMC11304069 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.110437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/10/2024] Open
Abstract
The electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) to valuable chemicals is gaining significant attention as a pragmatic solution for achieving carbon neutrality and storing renewable energy in a usable form. Recent research increasingly focuses on designing electrocatalysts that specifically convert CO2 into ethanol, a desirable product due to its high-energy density, ease of storage, and portability. However, achieving high-efficiency ethanol production remains a challenge compared to ethylene (a competing product with a similar electron configuration). Existing electrocatalytic systems often suffer from limitations such as low energy efficiency, poor stability, and inadequate selectivity toward ethanol. Inspired by recent progress in the field, this review explores fundamental principles and material advancements in CO2 electroreduction, emphasizing strategies for ethanol production over ethylene. We discuss electrocatalyst design, reaction mechanisms, challenges, and future research directions. These advancements aim to bridge the gap between current research and industrialized applications of this technology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zihong Wang
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Yecheng Li
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Zhihao Ma
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Dazhuang Wang
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui 230026, China
| | - Xiaodi Ren
- School of Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Anhui 230026, China
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Wang W, Duan J, Liu Y, Zhai T. Structural Reconstruction of Catalysts in Electroreduction Reaction: Identifying, Understanding, and Manipulating. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2022; 34:e2110699. [PMID: 35460124 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202110699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 04/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Electroreduction transformation of small molecules (CO2 , N2 , and H2 O) into chemical feedstocks offers a promising approach to eliminate carbon emissions and harness renewable energy. Most cathodic catalysts often undergo structural transformation under operating electroreduction conditions. These structural reconstructions are reflected in changes in their catalytic activity. In-depth understanding of the change of active sites and influence parameters of reconstruction behaviors is an essential precondition for the design of highly efficient catalysts. Despite the previous achievements, comprehensive insight toward the structural evolution mechanism in cathodic catalysts, compared to anode ones, under reaction conditions is still lacking. Herein, an overview of structural reconstruction for cathodic catalysts in terms of fundamental mechanisms, reconstruction process, advanced characterizations, and influencing parameters is provided. On this basis, the typical strategies for manipulating the structural reconfiguration of catalysts are also explicitly discussed from the catalyst structure and working environment. By delivering the mechanism, strategies, insights, and techniques, this review will provide a comprehensive understanding of the structural reconstruction of cathodic catalysts in electroreduction reactions and future guidelines for their rational development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenbin Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die & Mould Technology, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, 430074, P. R. China
| | - Junyuan Duan
- State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die & Mould Technology, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, 430074, P. R. China
| | - Youwen Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die & Mould Technology, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, 430074, P. R. China
| | - Tianyou Zhai
- State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die & Mould Technology, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, 430074, P. R. China
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Deng B, Zhao X, Li Y, Huang M, Zhang S, Dong F. Active site identification and engineering during the dynamic evolution of copper-based catalysts for electrocatalytic CO2 reduction. Sci China Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11426-022-1412-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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Wang H, Zhou X, Yu T, Lu X, Qian L, Liu P, Lei P. Surface restructuring in AgCu single-atom alloy catalyst and self-enhanced selectivity toward CO2 reduction. Electrochim Acta 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.electacta.2022.140774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Chen J, Wang L. Effects of the Catalyst Dynamic Changes and Influence of the Reaction Environment on the Performance of Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2022; 34:e2103900. [PMID: 34595773 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202103900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) is substantially researched due to its potential for storing intermittent renewable electricity and simultaneously helping mitigating the pressing CO2 emission concerns. The major challenge of electrochemical CO2 reduction lies on having good controls of this reaction due to its complicated reaction networks and its unusual sensitivity to the dynamic changes of the catalyst structure (chemical states, compositions, facets and morphology, etc.), and to the non-catalyst components at the electrode/electrolyte interface, in another word the reaction environments. To date, a comprehensive analysis on the interplays between the above catalyst-dynamic-changes/reaction environments and the CO2 reduction performance is rare, if not none. In this review, the catalyst dynamic changes observed during the catalysis are discussed based on the recent reports of electrochemical CO2 reduction. Then, the above dynamic changes are correlated to their effects on the catalytic performance. The influences of the reaction environments on the performance of CO2 reduction are also discussed. Finally, some perspectives on future investigations are offered with the aim of understanding the origins of the effects from the catalyst dynamic changes and the reaction environments, which will allow one to better control the CO2 reduction toward the desired products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiayi Chen
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117585, Singapore
| | - Lei Wang
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117585, Singapore
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Shi JL, Xiang SQ, Su DJ, Liu X, Zhang W, Zhao LB. Theoretical Insights on Au-based Bimetallic Alloy Electrocatalysts for Nitrogen Reduction Reaction with High Selectivity and Activity. CHEMSUSCHEM 2021; 14:4525-4535. [PMID: 34369085 DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202101462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Electrochemical reduction of nitrogen to produce ammonia at moderate conditions in aqueous solutions holds great prospect but also faces huge challenges. Considering the high selectivity of Au-based materials to inhibit competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and high activity of transition metals such as Fe and Mo toward the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR), it was proposed that Au-based alloy materials could act as efficient catalysts for N2 fixation based on density functional theory simulations. Only on Mo3 Au(111) surface the adsorption of N2 is stronger than H atom. Thermodynamics combined with kinetics studies were performed to investigate the influence of composition and ratio of Au-based alloys on NRR and HER. The binding energy and reorganization energy affected performance for the initial N2 activation and hydrogenation process. By considering the free-energy diagram, the computed potential-determining step was either the first or the fifth hydrogenation step on metal catalysts. The optimum catalytic activity could be achieved by adjusting atomic proportion in alloys to make all intermediate species exhibit moderate adsorption. Free-energy diagrams of N2 hydrogenation via Langmuir-Hinshelwood mechanism and hydrogen evolution via Tafel mechanism were compared to reveal that the Mo3 Au surface showed satisfactory catalytic performance by simultaneously promoting NRR and suppressing HER. Theoretical simulations demonstrated that Au-Mo alloy materials could be applied as high-performance electrocatalysts for NRR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun-Lin Shi
- Department of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, P. R. China
| | - Shi-Qin Xiang
- Department of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, P. R. China
| | - Dai-Jian Su
- Department of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, P. R. China
| | - Xiaohong Liu
- Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chongqing, 400714, P. R. China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chongqing, 400714, P. R. China
| | - Liu-Bin Zhao
- Department of Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, P. R. China
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Yang H, Negreiros FR, Sun Q, Xie M, Sementa L, Stener M, Ye Y, Fortunelli A, Goddard WA, Cheng T. Predictions of Chemical Shifts for Reactive Intermediates in CO 2 Reduction under Operando Conditions. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:31554-31560. [PMID: 34185998 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c02909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The electroreduction of CO2 into value-added products is a significant step toward closing the global carbon loop, but its performance remains far from meeting the requirement of any practical application. The insufficient understanding of the reaction mechanism is one of the major causes that impede future development. Although several possible reaction pathways have been proposed, significant debates exist due to the lack of experimental support. In this work, we provide opportunities for experiments to validate the reaction mechanism by providing predictions of the core-level shifts (CLS) of reactive intermediates, which can be verified by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) data in the experiment. We first validated our methods from benchmark calculations of cases with reliable experiments, from which we reach consistent predictions with experimental results. Then, we conduct theoretical calculations under conditions close to the operando experimental ones and predict the C 1s CLS of 20 reactive intermediates in the CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to CH4 and C2H4 on a Cu(100) catalyst by carefully including solvation effects and applied voltage (U). The results presented in this work should be guidelines for future experiments to verify and interpret the reaction mechanism of CO2RR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Yang
- Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, Joint International Research Laboratory of Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Fabio Ribeiro Negreiros
- CNR-ICCOM & IPCF, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Pisa 56124, Italy
- INFIQC, CONICET, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba 5000, Argentina
| | - Qintao Sun
- Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, Joint International Research Laboratory of Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Miao Xie
- Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, Joint International Research Laboratory of Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Luca Sementa
- CNR-ICCOM & IPCF, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Pisa 56124, Italy
| | - Mauro Stener
- Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, Università di Trieste, Trieste 34127, Italy
| | - Yifan Ye
- National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029, China
| | - Alessandro Fortunelli
- CNR-ICCOM & IPCF, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Pisa 56124, Italy
- Materials and Process Simulation Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, United States
| | - William A Goddard
- Materials and Process Simulation Center, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, United States
| | - Tao Cheng
- Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials & Devices, Joint International Research Laboratory of Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, Jiangsu, PR China
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Li J, Li J, Dun C, Chen W, Zhang D, Gu J, Urban JJ, Ager JW. Copper sulfide as the cation exchange template for synthesis of bimetallic catalysts for CO 2 electroreduction. RSC Adv 2021; 11:23948-23959. [PMID: 35478999 PMCID: PMC9036827 DOI: 10.1039/d1ra03811g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Among metals used for CO2 electroreduction in water, Cu appears to be unique in its ability to produce C2+ products like ethylene. Bimetallic combinations of Cu with other metals have been investigated with the goal of steering selectivity via creating a tandem pathway through the CO intermediate or by changing the surface electronic structure. Here, we demonstrate a facile cation exchange method to synthesize Ag/Cu electrocatalysts for CO2 reduction using Cu sulfides as a growth template. Beginning with Cu2−xS nanosheets (C-nano-0, 100 nm lateral dimension, 14 nm thick), varying the Ag+ concentration in the exchange solution produces a gradual change in crystal structure from Cu7S4 to Ag2S, as the Ag/Cu mass ratio varies from 0.3 to 25 (CA-nano-x, x indicating increasing Ag fraction). After cation exchange, the nanosheet morphology remains but with increased shape distortion as the Ag fraction is increased. Interestingly, the control (C-nano-0) and cation exchanged nanosheets have very high faradaic efficiency for producing formate at low overpotential (−0.2 V vs. RHE). The primary effect of Ag incorporation is increased production of C2+ products at −1.0 V vs. RHE compared with C-nano-0, which primarily produces formate. Cation exchange can also be used to modify the surface of Cu foils. A two-step electro-oxidation/sulfurization process was used to form Cu sulfides on Cu foil (C-foil-x) to a depth of a few 10 s of microns. With lower Ag+ concentrations, cation exchange produces uniformly dispersed Ag; however, at higher concentrations, Ag particles nucleate on the surface. During CO2 electroreduction testing, the product distribution for Ag/Cu sulfides on Cu foil (CA-foil-x-y) changes in time with an initial increase in ethylene and methane production followed by a decrease as more H2 is produced. The catalysts undergo a morphology evolution towards a nest-like structure which could be responsible for the change in selectivity. For cation-exchanged nanosheets (CA-nano-x), pre-reduction at negative potentials increases the CO2 reduction selectivity compared to tests of as-synthesized material, although this led to the aggregation of nanosheets into filaments. Both types of bimetallic catalysts are capable of selective reduction of CO2 to multi-carbon products, although the optimal configurations appear to be metastable. Cu sulfides as a template for Ag/Cu sulfide catalysts for electrochemical CO2. With the introduction of Ag, nanosheet show increased C2+ product generation. The catalysts undergo a morphology evolution as CO2 reduction proceeds.![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinghan Li
- State Key Laboratory of Metal Matrix Composites
- School of Materials Science and Engineering
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University
- Shanghai 200240
- China
| | - Junrui Li
- Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis
- Materials Sciences Division and Chemical Sciences Division
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Berkeley
- USA
| | - Chaochao Dun
- The Molecular Foundry
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Berkeley
- USA
| | - Wenshu Chen
- The School of Environmental Science
- Nanjing Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials
- Nanjing Xiaozhuang University
- Nanjing
- China
| | - Di Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Metal Matrix Composites
- School of Materials Science and Engineering
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University
- Shanghai 200240
- China
| | - Jiajun Gu
- State Key Laboratory of Metal Matrix Composites
- School of Materials Science and Engineering
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University
- Shanghai 200240
- China
| | - Jeffrey J. Urban
- The Molecular Foundry
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Berkeley
- USA
| | - Joel W. Ager
- Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis
- Materials Sciences Division and Chemical Sciences Division
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Berkeley
- USA
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