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Coupling of Cu(100) and (110) Facets Promotes Carbon Dioxide Conversion to Hydrocarbons and Alcohols
Author(s) -
Zhong Dazhong,
Zhao ZhiJian,
Zhao Qiang,
Cheng Dongfang,
Liu Bin,
Zhang Gong,
Deng Wanyu,
Dong Hao,
Zhang Lei,
Li Jingkun,
Li Jinping,
Gong Jinlong
Publication year - 2021
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.202015159
Subject(s) - faraday efficiency , copper , carbon dioxide , selectivity , coupling (piping) , electrolysis , hydrogen , current density , materials science , electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide , yield (engineering) , adsorption , electrode , chemical engineering , inorganic chemistry , chemistry , catalysis , electrochemistry , organic chemistry , metallurgy , carbon monoxide , electrolyte , engineering , physics , quantum mechanics
Copper can efficiently electro‐catalyze carbon dioxide reduction to C 2+ products (C 2 H 4 , C 2 H 5 OH, n‐propanol). However, the correlation between the activity and active sites remains ambiguous, impeding further improvements in their performance. The facet effect of copper crystals to promote CO adsorption and C−C coupling and consequently yield a superior selectivity for C 2+ products is described. We achieve a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 87 % and a large partial current density of 217 mA cm −2 toward C 2+ products on Cu(OH) 2 ‐D at only −0.54 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode in a flow‐cell electrolyzer. With further coupled to a Si solar cell, record‐high solar conversion efficiencies of 4.47 % and 6.4 % are achieved for C 2 H 4 and C 2+ products, respectively. This study provides an in‐depth understanding of the selective formation of C 2+ products on Cu and paves the way for the practical application of electrocatalytic or solar‐driven CO 2 reduction.