Efficiency and selectivity of CO2 reduction to CO on gold gas diffusion electrodes in acidic media

Large scale CO2 electrolysis to produce CO has mainly been performed in neutral and alkaline media. Here, we show that it can also be realized in acidic media, with faradaic efficiencies of 80-90%, and 30% better energy efficiency than obtained in neutral media. The electrochemical reduction of CO2 to CO is a promising technology for replacing production processes employing fossil fuels. Still, low energy efficiencies hinder the production of CO at commercial scale. CO2 electrolysis has mainly been performed in neutral or alkaline media, but recent fundamental work shows that high selectivities for CO can also be achieved in acidic media. Therefore, we investigate the feasibility of CO2 electrolysis at pH 2-4 at indrustrially relevant conditions, using 10 cm(2) gold gas diffusion electrodes. Operating at current densities up to 200 mA cm(-2), we obtain CO faradaic efficiencies between 80-90% in sulfate electrolyte, with a 30% improvement of the overall process energy efficiency, in comparison with neutral media. Additionally, we find that weakly hydrated cations are crucial for accomplishing high reaction rates and enabling CO2 electrolysis in acidic media. This study represents a step towards the application of acidic electrolyzers for CO2 electroreduction.

Automated summary

Large scale CO2 electrolysis to produce CO has traditionally been done in neutral and alkaline media, but recent research shows that it can also be achieved in acidic media with higher efficiency. Operating at current densities up to 200 mA cm(-2), CO faradaic efficiencies between 80-90% were obtained in sulfate electrolyte, representing a step towards the application of acidic electrolyzers for CO2 electroreduction.