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Ternary Sn‐Ti‐O Electrocatalyst Boosts the Stability and Energy Efficiency of CO 2 Reduction
Author(s) -
Wen Guobin,
Ren Bohua,
Park Moon G.,
Yang Jie,
Dou Haozhen,
Zhang Zhen,
Deng YaPing,
Bai Zhengyu,
Yang Lin,
Gostick Jeff,
Botton Gianluigi A.,
Hu Yongfeng,
Chen Zhongwei
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.202004149
Subject(s) - overpotential , faraday efficiency , materials science , ternary operation , electrocatalyst , mesoporous material , chemical engineering , formate , electrochemistry , catalysis , chemistry , electrode , biochemistry , computer science , engineering , programming language
Abstract Simultaneously improving energy efficiency (EE) and material stability in electrochemical CO 2 conversion remains an unsolved challenge. Among a series of ternary Sn‐Ti‐O electrocatalysts, 3D ordered mesoporous (3DOM) Sn 0.3 Ti 0.7 O 2 achieves a trade‐off between active‐site exposure and structural stability, demonstrating up to 71.5 % half‐cell EE over 200 hours, and a 94.5 % Faradaic efficiency for CO at an overpotential as low as 430 mV. DFT and X‐ray absorption fine structure analyses reveal an electron density reconfiguration in the Sn‐Ti‐O system. A downshift of the orbital band center of Sn and a charge depletion of Ti collectively facilitate the dissociative adsorption of the desired intermediate COOH* for CO formation. It is also beneficial in maintaining a local alkaline environment to suppress H 2 and formate formation, and in stabilizing oxygen atoms to prolong durability. These findings provide a new strategy in materials design for efficient CO 2 conversion and beyond.