SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE
Passivation of Cu nanosheet dissolution with Cu2+-containing electrolytes for selective electroreduction of CO2 to CH4†
Abstract
Electrocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) to methane (CH4) has drawn great attention for solving the problem of global warming by reducing greenhouse gases and recycling carbon resources. Among reported Cu-based catalysts, Cu nanosheets (Cu NSs) with a highly exposed (111) facet are beneficial for converting CO2 to CH4. However, the stability issue of Cu NSs, due to their dissolution, severely limits their performance and practical application in electrocatalytic CO2 reduction. Here, we report a method to effectively passivate the dissolution of Cu NSs by adding an appropriate amount of Cu2+ in the electrolyte, which improves the selectivity and stability of CO2 reduction to CH4. Structural characterization and CO2 reduction tests indicate that the Cu NSs maintain the exposed (111) facet and thus maintain the efficient reduction of CO2 to CH4 in the electrolyte containing an appropriate Cu2+ concentration. The Cu NSs exhibit a high CH4 selectivity of ∼70% and a high stability of ∼60% for ∼10 h. This work indicates that a moderate amount of Cu2+ in the electrolyte can passivate the Cu dissolution and increase the stability of Cu electrodes, providing a new perspective for achieving better stability of catalysts in the future.
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