Chalcogen heteroatoms doped nickel-nitrogen-carbon single-atom catalysts with asymmetric coordination for efficient electrochemical CO_(2) reduction

The electronic configuration of central metal atoms in single-atom catalysts(SACs)is pivotal in electrochemical CO_(2) reduction reaction(eCO_(2)RR).Herein,chalcogen heteroatoms(e.g.,S,Se,and Te)were incorporated into the symmetric nickel-nitrogen-carbon(Ni-N_(4)-C)configuration to obtain Ni-X-N_(3)-C(X:S,Se,and Te)SACs with asymmetric coordination presented for central Ni atoms.Among these obtained Ni-X-N_(3)-C(X:S,Se,and Te)SACs,Ni-Se-N_(3)-C exhibited superior eCO_(2)RR activity,with CO selectivity reaching~98% at-0.70 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode(RHE).The Zn-CO_(2) battery integrated with Ni-Se-N_(3)-C as cathode and Zn foil as anode achieved a peak power density of 1.82 mW cm^(-2) and maintained remarkable rechargeable stability over 20 h.In-situ spectral investigations and theoretical calculations demonstrated that the chalcogen heteroatoms doped into the Ni-N_(4)-C configuration would break coordination symmetry and trigger charge redistribution,and then regulate the intermediate behaviors and thermodynamic reaction pathways for eCO_(2)RR.Especially,for Ni-Se-N_(3)-C,the introduced Se atoms could significantly raise the d-band center of central Ni atoms and thus remarkably lower the energy barrier for the rate-determining step of ^(*)COOH formation,contributing to the promising eCO_(2)RR performance for high selectivity CO production by competing with hydrogen evolution reaction.

Polyacrylate modified Cu electrode for selective electrochemical CO_(2) reduction towards multicarbon products

Highly selective production of value-added multicarbon(C^(2+))products via electrochemical CO_(2) reduction reaction(eCO_(2)RR)on polycrystalline copper(Cu)remains challenging.Herein,the facile surface modification using poly(α-ethyl cyanoacrylate)(PECA)is presented to greatly enhance the C^(2+)selectivity for eCO_(2)RR over polycrystalline Cu,with Faradaic efficiency(FE)towards C^(2+)products increased from30.1%for the Cu electrode to 72.6%for the obtained Cu-PECA electrode at-1.1 V vs.reversible hydrogen electrode(RHE).Given the well-determined FEs towards C^(2+)products,the partial current densities for C^(2+)production could be estimated to be-145.4 mA cm~(-2)for the Cu-PECA electrode at-0.9 V vs.RHE in a homemade flow cell.In-situ spectral characterizations and theoretical calculations reveal that PECA featured with electron-accepting-C≡N and-COOR groups decorated onto the Cu electrode could inhibit the adsorption of^(*)H intermediates and stabilize the^(*)CO intermediates,given the redistributed interfacial electron density and the raised energy level of d-band center(E_(d))of Cu active sites,thus facilitating the C-C coupling and then the C^(2+)selective production.This study is believed to be guidable to the modification of electrocatalysts and electrodes with polymers to steer the surface adsorption behaviors of reaction intermediates to realize practical eCO_(2)RR towards value-added C^(2+)products with high activity and selectivity.

Function-switchable metal/semiconductor junction enables efficient photocatalytic overall water splitting with selective water oxidation products

A novel metal/semiconductor photocatalyst,Cu nanoparticles(NPs)modified TiO2 hollow spheres(Cu/TiO2),was designed for efficient photocatalytic overall water splitting(POWS)under both ultraviolet(UV)and visible(Vis)light.This Cu/TiO2 photocatalyst possesses excellent POWS performance under Vis light at the highest level among the reported TiO2-based photocatalysts.Interestingly,the metal/semiconductor junction formed between Cu and TiO2 enables controlled water-oxidation product selectivity(H2O2 or O2)via different reaction pathways regulated by irradiation wavelengths.Under UV light,the electrons excited in TiO2 are captured by Cu NPs through the Cu/TiO2 Schottky interface for H2 production,with the photoholes in TiO2 producing H2O2 through a two-electron process;whilst under Vis light,Cu NPs act as plasmon to inject hot electrons to TiO2 for H2 production,while O2 is produced by hot holes on Cu NPs via a four-electron process.This rational design of function-switchable metal/semiconductor junction may be helpful to understand the mechanisms for POWS with desired gas/liquid water-oxidation products.