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Title: Gas-Diffusion Electrodes for Carbon Dioxide Reduction: A New Paradigm

Journal Article · · ACS Energy Letters

Here significant advances have been made in recent years discovering new electrocatalysts and developing a fundamental understanding of electrochemical CO2 reduction processes. This field has progressed to the point that efforts can now focus on translating this knowledge toward the development of practical CO2 electrolyzers, which have the potential to replace conventional petrochemical processes as a sustainable route to produce fuels and chemicals. In this Perspective, we take a critical look at the progress in incorporating electrochemical CO2 reduction catalysts into practical device architectures that operate using vapor-phase CO2 reactants, thereby overcoming intrinsic limitations of aqueous-based systems. Performance comparison is made between state-of-the-art CO2 electrolyzers and commercial H2O electrolyzers—a well-established technology that provides realistic performance targets. Beyond just higher rates, vapor-fed reactors represent new paradigms for unprecedented control of local reaction conditions, and we provide a perspective on the challenges and opportunities for generating fundamental knowledge and achieving technological progress toward the development of practical CO2 electrolyzers.

Research Organization:
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-76SF00515; NRF-2017R1A6A3A03006971
OSTI ID:
1503644
Journal Information:
ACS Energy Letters, Vol. 4, Issue 1; ISSN 2380-8195
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 351 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Sputtered Platinum Thin-films for Oxygen Reduction in Gas Diffusion Electrodes: A Model System for Studies under Realistic Reaction Conditions journal April 2019
Catalyst–Electrolyte Interactions in Aqueous Reline Solutions for Highly Selective Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction journal November 2019
Progress in development of electrocatalyst for CO 2 conversion to selective CO production journal March 2020
Advances and challenges in electrochemical CO 2 reduction processes: an engineering and design perspective looking beyond new catalyst materials journal January 2020
Towards Higher Rate Electrochemical CO2 Conversion: From Liquid-Phase to Gas-Phase Systems journal March 2019
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Structure‐Sensitivity and Electrolyte Effects in CO 2 Electroreduction: From Model Studies to Applications journal June 2019
CO 2 electrolysis to multicarbon products at activities greater than 1 A cm −2 journal February 2020
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