Upgrading carbon dioxide (CO2) to high-value multi-carbon (C2+) products is one promising avenue for fuel and chemical production. Among all monometallic catalysts, copper (Cu) has attracted much attention because of its unique ability to convert CO2 or CO2 derived carbon monoxide (CO) to C2+ products with an appreciable selectivity. While numerous attempts have been made to synthesize Cu materials that expose desired facets, it still remains a challenge to obtain high-quality nanostructured Cu catalysts for electroreduction of CO2/CO. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of freestanding triangular-shaped two-dimensional Cu nanosheets, that selectively expose the (111) surface. In a 2 M KOH electrolyte, the Cu nanosheets exhibit an acetate Faradaic efficiency of 48% with an acetate partial current density up to 131 mA cm-2 in electrochemical CO reduction, representing among the highest acetate selectivity that has been achieved in CO2/CO electroreduction at practical rates of reaction (&gt;100 mA cm-2). Further analysis suggests that the high acetate selectivity is attributed to the suppression of ethylene and ethanol, likely due to the reduction of exposed (100) and (110) surfaces.

Two-dimensional copper nanosheets for electrochemical reduction of carbon monoxide to acetate

2019 Fall National Meeting

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