Co-electrolysis of CO2 and glycerol as a pathway to carbon chemicals with improved technoeconomics due to low electricity consumption

Verma, Sumit; Lu, Shawn; Kenis, Paul J. A.

doi:10.1038/s41560-019-0374-6

Cited by 504 publications

(507 citation statements)

References 38 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

500

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Current OER electrocatalysts often suffer from large overpotential (>300 mV) and poor stability particularly in neutral electrolytes. It was recently proposed that replacing the sluggish OER half reaction with less energy intensive alternatives (such as the oxidation of glycerol) could dramatically reduce the system operation cost and carbon footprint . In the future, one important task of CO 2 RR research is to better optimize the system design, and assess the electrochemical performance in terms of full‐cell figure of merit including cell voltage, cell current density, energy efficiency, and lifetime .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

Han

Pan

et al. 2019

Advanced Energy Materials

430

376

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Selective CO2 reduction to formic acid or formate is the most technologically and economically viable approach to realize electrochemical CO2 valorization. Main group metal–based (Sn, Bi, In, Pb, and Sb) nanostructured materials hold great promise, but are still confronted with several challenges. Here, the current status, challenges, and future opportunities of main group metal–based nanostructured materials for electrochemical CO2 reduction to formate are reviewed. Firstly, the fundamentals of electrochemical CO2 reduction are presented, including the technoeconomic viability of different products, possible reaction pathways, standard experimental procedure, and performance figures of merit. This is then followed by detailed discussions about different types of main group metal–based electrocatalyst materials, with an emphasis on underlying material design principles for promoting the reaction activity, selectivity, and stability. Subsequently, recent efforts on flow cells and membrane electrode assembly cells are reviewed so as to promote the current density as well as mechanistic studies using in situ characterization techniques. To conclude a short perspective is offered about the future opportunities and directions of this exciting field.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

Han

Pan

et al. 2019

Advanced Energy Materials

430

376

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Carbon‐based chemicals such as carbon monoxide, formic acid/formate, methanol, ethanol, and ethylene can be produced by eCO 2 RR . Thus, CO 2 can serve as a feedstock for the production of carbon‐based chemicals, which are traditionally produced using fossil fuel‐based production methods, leading to diminished CO 2 emissions in chemicals manufacturing . Use of a gas diffusion electrode (GDE) based flow electrolyzer allows for a direct gaseous feed of CO 2 which circumvents the diffusion limitations encountered in a 3‐electrode cell due to the low solubility of CO 2 in aqueous solutions under ambient conditions .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

System Design Rules for Intensifying the Electrochemical Reduction of CO₂ to CO on Ag Nanoparticles

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Electroreduction of CO 2 (eCO 2 RR) is a potentially sustainable approach for carbon-based chemical production. Despite significant progress, performing eCO 2 RR economically at scale is challenging. Here we report meeting key technoeconomic benchmarks simultaneously through electrolyte engineering and process optimization. A systematic flow electrolysis studyperforming eCO 2 RR to CO on Ag nanoparticles as a function of electrolyte composition (cations, anions), electrolyte concentration, electrolyte flow rate, cathode catalyst loading, and CO 2 flow rate -resulted in partial current densities of 417 and 866 mA/cm 2 with faradaic efficiencies of 100 and 98 % at cell potentials of À 2.5 and À 3.0 V with full cell energy efficiencies of 53 and 43 %, and a conversion per pass of 17 and 36 %, respectively, when using a CsOH-based electrolyte. The cumulative insights of this study led to the formulation of system design rules for high rate, highly selective, and highly energy efficient eCO 2 RR to CO.[a] S.

show abstract

“…On the other hand, Verma et al. have recently proposed the glycerol electro‐oxidation on Pt black as a promising alternative to replace the OER at the anode, allowing to reduce the cell potential to around 1 V, as well as being an alternative way to produce valuable compounds …”

Section: Challenges and Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The overall energy efficiency towards the formation of a certain product depends on both the overpotential and the Faradaic efficiency. In addition, one should consider the inefficiency at the anode electrode, which are thoroughly examined in recent works …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structure‐Sensitivity and Electrolyte Effects in CO₂ Electroreduction: From Model Studies to Applications

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aiming to reduce anthropogenic CO2 emissions, there is an urgent demand to develop more efficient and affordable technologies which convert CO2 into valuable feedstock molecules. The use of renewable electricity is a promising and sustainable approach to overcome this environmental issue, while producing valuable chemicals and clean fuels. However, the CO2 electroreduction reaction (CO2RR) still shows two main gaps: poor selectivity and required large overpotentials make the process not profitable enough. To overcome these challenges, model studies on single‐crystalline surfaces aiming to find the relations between surface structure/electrolyte interactions and activity/selectivity are necessary. In these model studies, tuning the electrolyte composition is also key for the fundamental understanding of the CO2RR. In this review, we first discuss the structure‐activity‐selectivity relations from studies on well‐ordered surfaces, i. e., single crystalline electrodes, for the CO2RR. We then summarise the role of the electrolyte, presenting work on classical aqueous solvents as well as non‐aqueous electrolytes such as ionic liquids. We illustrate the importance of carrying out studies on well‐defined electrified interfaces in order to get deep fundamental insights on the mechanism of the CO2RR, as well as scaling the process for real applications. Ultimately, this knowledge will be essential to rationally design the catalyst with tailored activity and selectivity for CO2 reduction.

show abstract

Co-electrolysis of CO2 and glycerol as a pathway to carbon chemicals with improved technoeconomics due to low electricity consumption

Cited by 504 publications

References 38 publications

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

System Design Rules for Intensifying the Electrochemical Reduction of CO₂ to CO on Ag Nanoparticles

Structure‐Sensitivity and Electrolyte Effects in CO₂ Electroreduction: From Model Studies to Applications

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Co-electrolysis of CO2 and glycerol as a pathway to carbon chemicals with improved technoeconomics due to low electricity consumption

Cited by 504 publications

References 38 publications

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction to Formate

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction to Formate

System Design Rules for Intensifying the Electrochemical Reduction of CO2 to CO on Ag Nanoparticles

Structure‐Sensitivity and Electrolyte Effects in CO2 Electroreduction: From Model Studies to Applications

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

Promises of Main Group Metal–Based Nanostructured Materials for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction to Formate

System Design Rules for Intensifying the Electrochemical Reduction of CO₂ to CO on Ag Nanoparticles

Structure‐Sensitivity and Electrolyte Effects in CO₂ Electroreduction: From Model Studies to Applications