Nanostructured catalysts for CO ₂ electroreduction: from product selectivity to scalable design

The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (eCO₂RR) offers a sustainable route to fuels and chemicals by coupling CO₂ conversion with renewable electricity. Rapid progress in nanostructured catalysts and advanced electrolyser designs has improved activity, selectivity, and current density. However, major barriers still impede industrial application. These include CO₂ activation challenges, competing hydrogen evolution, catalyst degradation, carbonate formation, membrane and GDE instability, and complex water and ion management under high current density operation. Achieving commercially relevant performance further requires long-term durability and efficient CO₂ utilization. This review highlights recent advances in nanocatalyst design for the product-selective eCO₂RR and outlines key structure-property strategies for bridging laboratory performance with practical, scalable electrolysis.