Recent Progresses in Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction on Copper-Based Catalysts toward Multicarbon Products

Electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO2RR) offers a promising way of effectively converting CO2 to value-added chemicals and fuels by utilizing renewable electricity. To date, the electrochemical reduction of CO2 to single-carbon products, especially carbon monoxide and formate, has been well achieved. However, the efficient conversion of CO2 to more valuable multicarbon products (e.g., ethylene, ethanol, n-propanol, and n-butanol) is difficult and still under intense investigation. Here, recent progresses in the electrochemical CO2 reduction to multicarbon products using copper-based catalysts are reviewed. First, the mechanism of CO2RR is briefly described. Then, representative approaches of catalyst engineering are introduced toward the formation of multicarbon products in CO2RR, such as composition, morphology, crystal phase, facet, defect, strain, and surface and interface. Subsequently, key aspects of cell engineering for CO2RR, including electrode, electrolyte, and cell design, are also discussed. Finally, recent advances are summarized and some personal perspectives in this research direction are provided.

Automated summary

Electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction offers a promising way of converting CO2 to value-added chemicals, but the conversion to more valuable multicarbon products remains challenging. Recent progress in using copper-based catalysts for electrochemical CO2 reduction to multicarbon products is reviewed, with a focus on catalyst engineering and cell engineering approaches.