Selectively Converting Carbon Dioxide to Syngas over Intermetallic AuCu Catalysts

Abstract

Electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) is attractive for efficiently recycling excessive CO2 to value-added feedstocks. However, their efficiency and selectivity strongly rely on the electrocatalysts. Herein, we report intermetallic AuCu catalysts for the selective and efficient CO2 conversion to syngas. Particularly, the ordered AuCu intermetallic catalyst achieves a high faradic efficiency of 75% with a partial current density of 78.3 mA cm–2 at −0.6 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) for producing CO in a flowing cell configuration. Moreover, the content of the generated syngas is widely controlled according to the potential-dependent CO2 reduction. Electrochemical results demonstrate that crystal engineering in ordered intermetallic alloy improves the activity and selectivity of CO2 reduction. This work not only provides efficient intermetallic AuCu catalysts for selectively converting CO2 but also offers valuable insights into crystal engineering for comprehensive and selective utilization of CO2 for a sustainable community.

Abundant (110) Facets on PdCu3 Alloy Promote Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 to CO

“…The ones of Pd 0 could be contributed to by the metallic Pd in the PdCu 3 alloy. For the Cu 2p XPS spectrum, the two peaks at the binding energies of 932.4 and 951.3 eV (Figure S6b) could be assigned to Cu 2p 3/2 and Cu 2p 1/2 , respectively. − Impressively, by comparing PdCu 3 /NC with Pd/NC and Cu/NC (Figures a,b and S7), it can be found that Pd 3d 5/2 is shifted to the higher binding energy, while Cu 2p 3/2 is shifted to the lower energy. These shifts might be attributed to the complex electronic effects brought about by the formation of Pd–Cu bonds between Pd and Cu.…”

Effectively Tuning the Ratio of CO and H2 into Syngas through CO2 Electrochemical Reduction over a Wide Potential Range on a ZnO Nanosheet via Ni Doping

“…They illustrated that CO selectivity was increased with the reduction in N coordination with Ni and the HER could be promoted by unsaturated Fe–Nx sites, thus the ratio of CO and H 2 could be adjusted. Similarly, Xia and co-workers designed an AuCu catalyst that could also convert CO 2 into syngas in a range of −0.4 and −1.1 V vs RHE . Although much progress has been realized in synthesized syngas, some key issues remain.…”

“…Similarly, Xia and co-workers designed an AuCu catalyst that could also convert CO 2 into syngas in a range of −0.4 and −1.1 V vs RHE. 25 Although much progress has been realized in synthesized syngas, some key issues remain. Firstly, lots of catalysts used to produce syngas are composed of noble metals (like Pd, Au, Ag, etc.…”

Targeted Intermetallic Nanocatalysts for Sustainable Biomass and CO2 Valorization

“…In addition, the AuCu IMC was prepared for the highly selective and efficient conversion of CO 2 to syngas. 14 In the H-type cell, the AuCu IMC has a maximum CO Faraday efficiency (FE) of 86% and a CO partial current density of 6.4 mA cm −2 at −0.9 V. Furthermore, in the flow tank configuration, the CO partial current density reaches more than 78 mA cm −2 at −0.6 V. The excellent performance is attributed to the strong electron interaction between Au and Cu atoms, that is, the transfer of electrons from Au to Cu. The transfer of electrons leads to the enhanced adsorption energy of the key intermediate CO 2 *, further improving the reactivity and selectivity.…”