Liquid fuels from carbon dioxide
Electrocatalyst converts CO2 into multicarbon products

Date:
November 15, 2021
Source:
Wiley
Summary:
A new electrocatalyst called a-CuTi@Cu converts carbon dioxide
(CO2) into liquid fuels. Active copper centered on an amorphous
copper/titanium alloy produces ethanol, acetone, and n-butanol
with high efficiency.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
A new electrocatalyst called a-CuTi@Cu converts carbon dioxide (CO2) into liquid fuels. As reported by a team of Chinese researchers in the journal Angewandte Chemie, active copper centered on an amorphous copper/titanium
alloy produces ethanol, acetone, and n-butanol with high efficiency.


==========================================================================
Most of our global energy demands are still being met by burning fossil
fuels, which contributes to the greenhouse effect through the release of
CO2. To reduce global warming, we must look for opportunities to use CO2
as a raw material for basic chemicals. Through electrocatalytic conversion
of CO2 using renewable energy, a climate-neutral, artificial carbon cycle
could be established. Excess energy produced by photovoltaics and wind
energy could be stored through the electrocatalytic production of fuels
from CO2. These could then be burned as needed. Conversion into liquid
fuels would be advantageous because they have high energy density and
are safe to store and transport.

However, the electrocatalytic formation of products with two or more
carbon atoms (C2+) is very challenging.

A team from Foshan University (Foshan, Guangdong), the University
of Science and Technology of China (Hefei, Anhui), and Xi'an Shiyou
University (Xi'an, Shaanxi), led by Fei Hu, Tingting Kong, Jun Jiang, and
Yujie Xiong has now developed a novel electrocatalyst that efficiently
converts CO2 to liquid fuels with multiple carbon atoms (C2-4). The
primary products are ethanol, acetone, and n-butanol.

To make the electrocatalyst, thin ribbons of a copper/titanium alloy
are etched with hydrofluoric acid to remove the titanium from the
surface. This results in a material named a-CuTi@Cu, with a porous copper surface on an amorphous CuTi alloy. It has catalytically active copper
centers with remarkably high activity, selectivity, and stability for the reduction of CO2 to C2+ products (total faradaic efficiency of about 49 %
at 0.8 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode for C2-4, and it is stable
for at least three months). In contrast, pure copper foil produces C1
products but hardly any C2+ products.

The reaction involves a multistep electron-transfer process via various intermediates. In the new electrocatalyst, the inactive titanium atoms
below the surface actually play an important role; they increase the
electron density of the Cu atoms on the surface. This stabilizes the
adsorption of *CO, the key intermediate in the formation of multicarbon products, allows for high coverage of the surface with *CO, and lowers the energy barrier for di- and trimerization of the *CO as new carbon-carbon
bonds are formed.

About the Author Dr. Yujie Xiong is the Chair Professor of Chemistry at
the University of Science and Technology of China. His main specialty
is the artificial carbon cycle.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Wiley. Note: Content may be edited
for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Fei Hu, Li Yang, Yawen Jiang, Chongxiong Duan, Xiaonong Wang,
Longjiao
Zeng, Xuefeng Lv, Delong Duan, Qi Liu, Tingting Kong, Jun
Jiang, Ran Long, Yujie Xiong. Ultrastable Cu Catalyst for CO 2
Electroreduction to Multicarbon Liquid Fuels by Tuning C-C Coupling
with CuTi Subsurface.

Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2021; DOI: 10.1002/
anie.202110303 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211115123443.htm

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