Nanomaterials (Jul 2022)

Revealing the Real Role of Etching during Controlled Assembly of Nanocrystals Applied to Electrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub>

  • Tingting Yue,
  • Ying Chang,
  • Haitao Huang,
  • Jingchun Jia,
  • Meilin Jia

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12152546
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 15
p. 2546

Abstract

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In recent years, the use of inexpensive and efficient catalysts for the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to regulate syngas ratios has become a hot research topic. Here, a series of nitrogen-doped iron carbide catalysts loaded onto reduced graphene oxide (N-Fe3C/rGO-H) were prepared by pyrolysis of iron oleate, etching, and nitrogen-doped carbonization. The main products of the N-Fe3C/rGO-H electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 are CO and H2, when tested in a 0.5 M KHCO3 electrolyte at room temperature and pressure. In the prepared catalysts, the high selectivity (the Faraday efficiency of CO was 40.8%, at −0.3 V), and the total current density reaches ~29.1 mA/cm2 at −1.0 V as demonstrated when the mass ratio of Fe3O4 NPs to rGO was equal to 100, the nitrogen doping temperature was 800 °C and the ratio of syngas during the reduction process was controlled by the applied potential (−0.2~−1.0 V) in the range of 1 to 20. This study provides an opportunity to develop nonprecious metals for the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction preparation of synthesis and gas provides a good reference

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