A New Pathway for CO2 Reduction Relying on the Self-Activation Mechanism of Boron-Doped Diamond Cathode
At a Glance
Section titled āAt a Glanceā| Metadata | Details |
|---|---|
| Publication Date | 2022-05-23 |
| Journal | JACS Au |
| Authors | Jinglun Du, Andrea Fiorani, Taichi Inagaki, Atsushi Otake, Michio Murata |
| Institutions | Keio University |
| Citations | 31 |
Abstract
Section titled āAbstractāBy means of an initial electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction (eCO<sub>2</sub>RR), both the reaction current and Faradaic efficiency of the eCO<sub>2</sub>RR on boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes were significantly improved. Here, this effect is referred to as the self-activation of BDD. Generally, the generation of carbon dioxide radical anions (CO<sub>2</sub> <sup>ā¢-</sup>) is the most recognized pathway leading to the formation of hydrocarbons and oxygenated products. However, the self-activation process enabled the eCO<sub>2</sub>RR to take place at a low potential, that is, a low energy, where CO<sub>2</sub> <sup>ā¢-</sup> is hardly produced. In this work, we found that unidentate carbonate and carboxylic groups were identified as intermediates during self-activation. Increasing the amount of these intermediates via the self-activation process enhances the performance of eCO<sub>2</sub>RR. We further evaluated this effect in long-term experiments using a CO<sub>2</sub> electrolyzer for formic acid production and found that the electrical-to-chemical energy conversion efficiency reached 50.2% after the BDD self-activation process.