Built‐in Axial Electric Field‐Driven Electron‐Rich Monomolecular Co Sites for Promoting CO <sub>2</sub> Electroreduction to CO Over Ultrawide Potential Window

Using renewable electricity to convert CO<sub>2</sub> into CO offers a sustainable route to producing a versatile intermediate to synthesize various chemicals and fuels. However, the conversion at scale is largely constrained owing to the lack of potential-universal feasibility. Here, we developed an electrocatalyst featuring CoPc anchored ZnO with rich oxygen vacancies (CoPc@ZnO<sub>v</sub>), thus improving the activity and selectivity of CO<sub>2</sub>-to-CO conversion. Notably, the FEco of CoPc@ZnO<sub>v</sub> remains above 90% over an ultrawide potential window of 1.3 V (-0.7 to -2.0 V versus RHE) in H-type cell, 1.40 V (-0.4 to -1.8 V versus RHE) in flow cell and 1.0 V (low cell voltages of 2.0-3.0 V) in the MEA device, surpassing those of previously reported molecular CoPc-based electrocatalysts and even most single metal site materials. Density functional theory calculations combined with in-situ spectroscopies reveal that the built-in axial electric field arising from the p-n junction rectification effect could drive electron-rich single Co-N<sub>4</sub> sites with asymmetric charge distribution and geometric curvature, which promotes *COOH formation (i.e., strong CO<sub>2</sub> adsorption, rapid H<sub>2</sub>O dissociation and proton supply), *CO desorption and as well suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction, thus favoring the production of CO via CO<sub>2</sub>RR over ultrawide potential windows. This work presents a novel catalyst design strategy of asymmetrical monomolecular Co-N<sub>4</sub> sites based on the built-in axial electric field theory, as well as a new way to tune the out-of-plane polarization for improved catalytic performance.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Published
2025-10-21
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202511671
Citations
5
Primary Topic
CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.82
Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Built‐in Axial Electric Field‐Driven Electron‐Rich Monomolecular Co Sites for Promoting CO 2 Electroreduction to CO Over Ultrawide Potential Window

Botao Hu, Caiyue Wang, Jiatao Zhang, Xiaoran Su et al.
5 citations
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
1.82
article

Built‐in Axial Electric Field‐Driven Electron‐Rich Monomolecular Co Sites for Promoting CO 2 Electroreduction to CO Over Ultrawide Potential Window

Botao Hu, Caiyue Wang, Jiatao Zhang, Xiaoran Su, Lirong Zheng, Di Zhao, Yingzheng Zhang, Chen Chen, Chuhao Liu
article en
5 citations

Abstract

Using renewable electricity to convert CO<sub>2</sub> into CO offers a sustainable route to producing a versatile intermediate to synthesize various chemicals and fuels. However, the conversion at scale is largely constrained owing to the lack of potential-universal feasibility. Here, we developed an electrocatalyst featuring CoPc anchored ZnO with rich oxygen vacancies (CoPc@ZnO<sub>v</sub>), thus improving the activity and selectivity of CO<sub>2</sub>-to-CO conversion. Notably, the FEco of CoPc@ZnO<sub>v</sub> remains above 90% over an ultrawide potential window of 1.3 V (-0.7 to -2.0 V versus RHE) in H-type cell, 1.40 V (-0.4 to -1.8 V versus RHE) in flow cell and 1.0 V (low cell voltages of 2.0-3.0 V) in the MEA device, surpassing those of previously reported molecular CoPc-based electrocatalysts and even most single metal site materials. Density functional theory calculations combined with in-situ spectroscopies reveal that the built-in axial electric field arising from the p-n junction rectification effect could drive electron-rich single Co-N<sub>4</sub> sites with asymmetric charge distribution and geometric curvature, which promotes *COOH formation (i.e., strong CO<sub>2</sub> adsorption, rapid H<sub>2</sub>O dissociation and proton supply), *CO desorption and as well suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction, thus favoring the production of CO via CO<sub>2</sub>RR over ultrawide potential windows. This work presents a novel catalyst design strategy of asymmetrical monomolecular Co-N<sub>4</sub> sites based on the built-in axial electric field theory, as well as a new way to tune the out-of-plane polarization for improved catalytic performance.

Angewandte Chemie International EditionVol. 64(51)
Beijing Institute of Technology (CN), China Academy of Space Technology (CN), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (FR), Fuzhou University (CN), Tsinghua University (CN)
Openalex Percentile: Top 14%
CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts
1.82
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.