Synergistic Effect of Cu2O Mesh Pattern on High Facet Cu Surface for Selective CO2 Electroreduction to Ethanol

Although the electro-conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) into ethanol is considered to be one of the most promising ways of using CO2 , the ethanol selectivity is less than 50% because of difficulties in designing an optimal catalyst that arise from the complicated pathways for the electro-reduction of CO2 to ethanol. Several approaches including the fabrication of oxide-derived structures, atomic surface control, and the Cu+ /Cu interfaces, have been primarily used to produce ethanol from CO2 . Here, we constructed a combined structure with Cu+ and high-facets as electrocatalysts by creating high-facets of wrinkled Cu surrounded by Cu2 O mesh patterns. Using chemical vapor deposition graphene growth procedures, we used the insufficiently grown graphene as oxidation masking materials, and we simultaneously generated the high-facet wrinkled Cu during the graphene growth synthesis. The resulting electrocatalyst showed an ethanol selectivity of 43% at -0.8 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode, which is one of the highest ethanol selectivity values reported thus far. This is attributed to the role of Cu+ in enhancing CO binding strength and the high-facets, which favor C-C coupling and ethanol pathway. This method for generating the combined structure can be widely applicable not only for electrochemical catalysts but also in various fields. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.