A novel approach utilizing polymeric ionic liquid (PIL) enhances the acidic electroreduction of CO2 to multicarbon products at high current densities on copper catalysts.
Researchers have developed a game-changing method for improving the electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) to valuable multicarbon products, which is becoming increasingly important amid climate concerns. The study, published in Nature Communications, highlights how capping copper (Cu) catalysts with polymeric ionic liquid (PIL) significantly boosts the efficiency of CO2 conversion to multicarbon products under acidic conditions.
The findings suggest this novel strategy could be pivotal for addressing the challenges of CO2 emissions and climate change by converting CO2 back to useful compounds like ethanol and acetic acid, among others. The research reveals impressive data, noting the Faradaic efficiency (FE) for C2+ products reached 82.2% at current densities up to 1.0 A·cm−2, with performance remaining high even at lower K+ concentrations.
Typically, CO2 reduction reactions to multicarbon products have been constrained by the use of neutral or alkaline environments, which can inadvertently lead to the generation of carbonate ions and reduce the overall efficiency of CO2 utilization. This study proposes using acidic electrolytes as alternatives to mitigate these issues.
"Using acidic electrolyte as an alternative to neutral or alkaline electrolyte for CO2RR can effectively improve CO2 utilization by restraining carbonate ion generation and preventing CO2 crossover," emphasized the authors of the article.
At the heart of this revolutionary approach is the capping of Ca on the copper surface with PILs. The PIL adlayer inhibits the diffusion of hydrogen ions (H+) to the catalyst surface, enabling more potassium ions (K+) to accumulate at the Cu interface, which is also pivotal for enhancing carbon-carbon coupling reactions—an important step toward producing valuable multicarbon products.
The study not only showcases the advantages of utilizing PILs around Cu catalysts but also reinforces the need to innovate approaches to CO2 conversion technology. "The strategy of using PIL adlayer for Cu to promote the acidic electrochemical CO2 deep reduction with ampere-level current is efficient, versatile, and simple, which has important industrial application potential," the authors remarked.
Overall, this research sets the stage for future advancements, positioning PIL-capped copper catalysts as promising agents for catalyzing CO2 electroreduction effectively, potentially influencing large-scale processes aimed at carbon neutral energy cycles.