Examination of the Electroreduction of CO2 Using Cuprous and Intermetallic Catalysts on Carbon Solid Supports with Novel in situ TEM Imaging

Abstract

Electrochemical reduction of CO2 into more valuable commodities is a potential strategy for reducing the levels of atmospheric CO2 saturation globally while profitably yielding carbon-based products. Electrocatalysts for these reductions, however, are often costly, both in terms of the overpotential required to conduct the electroreduction as well as in terms of the raw costs needed for the materials used. Therefore, it is beneficial to use novel in situ TEM electrochemical techniques to image the electroreduction process, observing the surface morphological changes as they happen, in order to design a catalyst capable of producing higher order organic products at decent efficiency. The successful imaging of the electroreduction of CO2 purged K2SO4 across a copper thin film catalyst is one of the first examples of the use of this imaging technique and informs our understanding of the stability of metallic films under reducing potentials and the overall feasibility of TEM use in electrochemistry.