Premium
Insights into Carbon Dioxide Electroreduction in Ionic Liquids: Carbon Dioxide Activation and Selectivity Tailored by Ionic Microhabitat
Author(s) -
Feng Jianpeng,
Zeng Shaojuan,
Liu Huizhen,
Feng Jiaqi,
Gao Hongshuai,
Bai Lu,
Dong Haifeng,
Zhang Suojiang,
Zhang Xiangping
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
chemsuschem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.412
H-Index - 157
eISSN - 1864-564X
pISSN - 1864-5631
DOI - 10.1002/cssc.201801373
Subject(s) - ionic liquid , chemistry , electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide , carbon dioxide , inorganic chemistry , selectivity , formic acid , faraday efficiency , electrolyte , catalysis , organic chemistry , electrode , carbon monoxide
Electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into high value‐added products is a potential solution to a reduction in CO 2 levels and its utilization. One major challenge is the lack of an efficient system that can highly selectively reduce CO 2 into desirable products with low energy consumption. Ionic liquids (ILs) have been used as electrolytes for the electroreduction of CO 2 , and it has been proven that the CO 2 –cation complex results in a low‐energy pathway. In this work, an ionic microhabitat (IMH) has been built for CO 2 electroreduction, and a novel anion‐functionalized IL, 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium 1,2,4triazolide ([Bmim][124Triz]), has been designed as the reaction medium. The results showed that the IMH played a key role in enhancing the performance of CO 2 electroreduction, especially in dominating the product selectivity, which is recognized to be a great challenge in an electroreduction process. New insights into the role of the IMH in higher CO 2 solubility, bending linear CO 2 by forming the [124Triz]–CO 2 − adduct, and transferring activated CO 2 into the cathode surface easily were revealed. The Faradaic efficiency for formic acid is as high as 95.2 %, with a current density reaching 24.5 mA cm −2 . This work provides a promising way for the design of robust and highly efficient ILs for CO 2 electroreduction.