Highly efficient and stable ethanol electrosynthesis from carbon dioxide at −250 mA cm−2
The electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>RR) to ethanol (C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>5</sub>OH) represents notable research significance and commercial value in large-scale chemical production. However, the limited selectivity for C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>5</sub>OH and the uncontrollable changes in active sites during reaction process restrict the ability of catalyst to achieve stable and efficient CO<sub>2</sub>RR to C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>5</sub>OH at industrial current density. Here, we report a system that immunizes the reconstruction of catalytic active sites, where the CuAg catalytic centers are protected by nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA). Importantly, the constructed CuAg@NTA catalyst exhibits low barriers for C-C coupling and hydrogenation of *CH<sub>2</sub>CHO to *CH<sub>3</sub>CH<sub>2</sub>O. Consequently, the catalyst achieves a high ethanol faradaic efficiency (FE<sub>C2H5OH</sub>) of 87.21% with a partial current density of -218.03 mA cm<sup>-2</sup>. Furthermore, the catalyst maintaining over 70% of FE<sub>C2H5OH</sub> after 300 h at -250 mA cm<sup>-2</sup>, which are leading among previously reported catalysts in the selectivity and stability of CO<sub>2</sub>RR to C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>5</sub>OH at industrial current density. This study provides insights into the selectivity and stability enhancement of catalysts for electrocatalytic CO<sub>2</sub>RR to C<sub>2</sub>H<sub>5</sub>OH.
Authors
- Yingchen Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5076-0225)
- Longhua Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1817-5039)
- Jinhui Hao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9806-3098)
- Weidong Shi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1123-8191)
- Yifu Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7927-1350)
- Woyuan Li
- Hong Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4926-1960)
- Ye Bai
- Yaoxuan Wang
Institutions
- Jiangsu University (CN)
- Jiangsu University of Science and Technology (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-07-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61132-2
- Citations
- 4
- Primary Topic
- CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.45