Electrocatalytic CO<sub>2</sub> Reduction for Dynamic C<sub>1</sub>, C<sub>2</sub>, and C<sub>3+</sub> Chemistry over Electrodeposited Zn on Cu and CuZn Mesh Supports
Sooyeon Bae, Seon Young Hwang, Gaeun Yun, Yunji Gwon, So Young Kim, Choong Kyun Rhee, Youngku Sohn
Abstract
The electrodeposition of Cu and Zn onto bare Cu and CuZn mesh supports offers a straightforward method for fabricating novel electrodes for electrochemical CO 2 reduction (EC CO 2 R). This study evaluates the performance of these modified electrodes by assessing their Faradaic efficiency (FE) under various conditions including different electrolytes, concentrations, applied potentials, recycling effects, and Nafion treatment. The reduction products were categorized into several groups: C 1 gaseous products (CO and CH 4 ), C 2 gaseous products (C 2 H 4 and C 2 H 6 ), C 3,4 hydrocarbons, major C 1 /C 2 /C 3 liquid products (formate, ethanol, and propanol), and minor C 1 /C 2 /C 3 liquid products (methanol, acetate, acetaldehyde, and isopropanol). We evaluated their dynamic FE variations under various experimental conditions. The production of C 2+ hydrocarbons through EC CO 2 R was found to be analogous to conventional Fischer–Tropsch synthesis, highlighting the pivotal roles of *CO and *CH x intermediates. This study’s insights into the dynamic variations of C 1, C 2, and C 3+ product chemistry aid in the further development of Zn and Cu-based electrocatalysts.