Engineering Bimetallic Copper‐Tin Based Core‐Shell Alloy@Oxide Nanowire as Efficient Catalyst for Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction

Abstract

Pursuing both high effective and selective electrocatalysts is significant for efficient and low-cost electrochemical carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) reduction. Here, we design a novel bimetallic alloy/oxide nanowire catalyst with core-shell configuration. A typical CuSn alloy core provides high electrical conductivity while the amorphous Cu doped SnO 2 shell guarantees the catalytic activity and selectivity for CO 2 reduction process. Computational studies further elucidate the important role of Cu doped SnO 2 layer in the electrocatalytic selectivity for formate and the restraint of hydrogen production. Benefited from the well-designed components and hierarchical configuration, the as-prepared electrocatalyst displays a partial current density of 30 mA cm À 2 with a Faradaic efficiency of 78 % at À 0.9 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) for formate. This work provides a new pathway to design advanced electrocatalyst for CO 2 electrochemical reduction.

Copper and silver nanowires for CO2 electroreduction

“… 60 Recently, the synergy between Cu activity and Sn selectivity has been also proposed for the electrochemical production of formate. Wang and coworkers 61 designed, synthesized, and tested a bimetallic copper-tin based core–shell alloy@oxide nanostructure, where the CuSn core ensured efficient electrical contact with the active sites, whereas the catalytic activity and selectivity towards formate were guaranteed by the external layer of SnO 2 doped with amorphous Cu. The selectivity was demonstrated to be affected by the thickness of the external shell, resulting in the generation of formate when it was thick enough (1.8 nm), whereas for thinner layers (0.8 nm), the main product was CO.…”

Electro‐Synthesis of Organic Compounds with Heterogeneous Catalysis

“…Wu and colleagues devised a novel core‐shell configuration for bimetallic alloy/oxide nanowire catalysts. [ 190 ] Typically, a core of CuSn alloy ensures high electrical conductivity, while the SnO 2 shell amorphized with Cu guarantees catalytic activity and selectivity. Molecular dynamics studies further demonstrate that Cu‐doped SnO 2 layers play a major role in the electrocatalytic selectivity for formate and the control of hydrogen production during electrocatalysis.…”

Oxide-Derived Copper Nanowire Bundles for Efficient CO2 Reduction to Multi-Carbon Products

“…In addition, Cu-nanowire-based catalysts (NW) are considered as more selective and efficient catalysts for the CO 2 ERR towards C 2+ production due to the five exposed (100) planes in their five-twinned surface structures [24][25][26]. Despite the fact that most of the works on Cu-NW-based catalysts elevated the CO 2 ERR activity only towards CO and formate production [27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34], Ma et al first reported a 32.6% C 2+ faradaic efficiency over a CuO-derived Cu NW array and demonstrated the relevance of nanowire lengths and densities for C 2+ selectivities [35]; Zhu et al optimized a Cu x Au y NW array and achieved the highest ethanol faradaic efficiency of 48% [36]; and Zhang et al investigated a CuCl-derived Cu NW, obtaining a C 2+ faradaic efficiency of 60% via catalyzing the reduction of CO rather than CO 2 [37]. Although improvements in the CO 2 ERR performance of Cu-NW-based electrocatalysts have been made, the insufficient CO 2 ERR activity and C 2+ selectivity [38] as well as the structure reconfiguration of Cu-based catalysts during electroreduction [39,40] led the demand for further investigations towards more efficient CO 2 ERR electrocatalyst designs.…”