Electrochemical CO 2 reduction to ethylene by ultrathin CuO nanoplate arrays.

Electrochemical reduction of CO ₂ to multi-carbon fuels and chemical feedstocks is an appealing approach to mitigate excessive CO ₂ emissions. However, the reported catalysts always show either a low Faradaic efficiency of the C ₂₊ product or poor long-term stability. Herein, we report a facile and scalable anodic corrosion method to synthesize oxygen-rich ultrathin CuO nanoplate arrays, which form Cu/Cu ₂ O heterogeneous interfaces through self-evolution during electrocatalysis. The catalyst exhibits a high C ₂ H ₄ Faradaic efficiency of 84.5%, stable electrolysis for ~55 h in a flow cell using a neutral KCl electrolyte, and a full-cell ethylene energy efficiency of 27.6% at 200 mA cm ^-2 in a membrane electrode assembly electrolyzer. Mechanism analyses reveal that the stable nanostructures, stable Cu/Cu ₂ O interfaces, and enhanced adsorption of the *OCCOH intermediate preserve selective and prolonged C ₂ H ₄ production. The robust and scalable produced catalyst coupled with mild electrolytic conditions facilitates the practical application of electrochemical CO ₂ reduction.
(© 2022. The Author(s).)