Selective electrocatalytic reduction of CO_(2) to formate via carbon-shell-encapsulated In_(2)O_(3) nanoparticles/graphene nanohybrids

Constructing nanohybrids with a synergistic effect using multi-components and specific micro/nanostructures can significantly enhance their electrocatalytic activity.In this work,we fabricated an In_(2)O_(3)■NC@GO nanohybrid,in which In_(2)O_(3)nanoparticles(NPs)were encapsulated by an N-doped carbon(NC)shell and supported on graphene.The multi-components in In_(2)O_(3)■NC@GO synergistically optimize the structural and electronic properties of the material.The particle size and dispersion of In_(2)O_(3)NPs were optimized owing to the separation effect of the amorphous NC shell and graphene support.This separation effect exposes more number of active sites for the electrochemical reaction.Abundant oxygen vacancies exist in In_(2)O_(3),leading to a stronger ability for the adsorption and activation of CO.The NC shell inhibits the direct contact between the electrolyte and In_(2)O_(3),which significantly suppresses competitive Hevolution.The charge transfer during the electrocatalysis process is also effectively enhanced due to the carbon components.The synergistic effect of multi-components in the In_(2)O_(3)■NC@GO sample results in a significantly improved COreduction reaction performance with a high HCOOFaradic efficiency(FE)of 91.2%and a current density of 40.38 m A cmat–0.8 V obtained using a flow cell.The present work demonstrates that rationally designing nanohybrids with multifunctional components is an effective strategy for optimizing the structural and electrocatalytic properties of materials for energy conversion.