Overall Carbon‐neutral Electrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> in Molten Salts using a Liquid Metal Sn Cathode
Shuangxi Jing, Sheng Ren, Xinxin Liang, Dong Gu, Yuhao Peng, Juanxiu Xiao, Yijun Shen, Di Hu, Wei Xiao
Abstract
Abstract An overall carbon‐neutral CO 2 electroreduction requires enhanced conversion efficiency and intensified functionality of CO 2 ‐derived products to balance the carbon footprint from CO 2 electroreduction against fixed CO 2 . A liquid Sn cathode is herein introduced into electrochemical reduction of CO 2 in molten salts to fabricate core–shell Sn−C spheres (Sn@C). An in situ generated Li 2 SnO 3 /C directs a self‐template formation of Sn@C. Benefitting from the accelerated reaction kinetics from the liquid Sn cathode and the core–shell structure of Sn@C, a CO 2 ‐fixation current efficiency higher than 84 % and a high reversible lithium‐storage capacity of Sn@C are achieved. The versatility of this strategy is demonstrated by other low melting point metals, such as Zn and Bi. This process integrates energy‐efficient CO 2 conversion and template‐free fabrication of value‐added metal‐carbon, achieving an overall carbon‐neutral electrochemical reduction of CO 2 .