Highly selective electrochemical reduction of CO2 to formate on metal-free nitrogen-doped PC61BM

Herein we report the first example of a nitrogen-doped fullerene derivative metal-free catalyst for electrochemical reduction of CO2 to formate. The N-doped PC61BM ([6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester) (N-C61) exhibits an excellent activity toward CO2 reduction, reaching a high faradaic effic...

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Published inJournal of materials chemistry. A, Materials for energy and sustainability Vol. 6; no. 24; pp. 11236 - 11243
Main Authors Chen, Zhipeng, Mou, Kaiwen, Yao, Shunyu, Liu, Licheng
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cambridge Royal Society of Chemistry 2018
Subjects
Butyric acid
Carbon dioxide
Chemical reduction
Electrocatalysts
Electrochemistry
Fullerenes
Metals
Nitrogen
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Summary:Herein we report the first example of a nitrogen-doped fullerene derivative metal-free catalyst for electrochemical reduction of CO2 to formate. The N-doped PC61BM ([6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester) (N-C61) exhibits an excellent activity toward CO2 reduction, reaching a high faradaic efficiency (FE) of 91.2% for formate production with good stability at a moderate overpotential of 700 mV. A partial formate current density (jHCOO−) of 14.7 mA cm−2 was observed at −1.1 V (vs. RHE), which is larger than those of most metal-free electrocatalysts. Additionally, a detailed study suggests that graphitic N-defects are the most likely active sites for formate formation. This work provides a practical and feasible way to fabricate an N-doped fullerene derivative and other heteroatom doped fullerene-based electrocatalysts for electrochemical reduction of CO2.
ISSN:2050-7488
2050-7496
DOI:10.1039/c8ta03328e