A Hybrid Photo-Electro Catalytic Conversion of Carbon dioxide Using CuO–MgO Nanocomposite

• Published in: Topics in catalysis Vol. 68; no. 13; pp. 1418 - 1426
• Main Authors: Sha, Mizaj Shabil, Maurya, Muni Raj, Shafath, Sadiyah, Hijazi, Dima, Alahmed, Johaina, Alahmed, Hanin, Sleim, Mostafa H., Kumar, Bijandra, Abdullah, Aboubakr M., Sadasivuni, Kishor Kumar
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.07.2025; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Carbon dioxide; Catalysis; Catalytic converters; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemical reduction; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Fuels; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Magnesium oxide; Nanocomposites; Optical properties; Original Paper; Pharmacy; Physical Chemistry; Raman spectroscopy; Renewable resources; Sol-gel processes; Solar energy; Spectrum analysis; Structural stability; Synthesis; CuO–MgO; Sol–gel process; reduction; Photoelectrochemical CO
• ISSN: 1022-5528; 1572-9028
• DOI: 10.1007/s11244-022-01579-5

Reducing carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into fuels accompanied by renewable resources has been under research since it helps to decrease CO 2 levels in the atmosphere. The most suited source is solar energy which is generous and sustainable. In this aspect, photocatalysis (PC) and photo electrocatalysis (PEC) are favorable methods to utilize solar energy for CO 2 reduction to carbonaceous fuels. A PEC system is more efficient than a PC system because of the ability to separate photogenerated holes and electrons for higher efficiency. The photo-electrochemical CO 2 reduction reaction (PEC-CO 2 RR) can be considered as an artificial photosynthetic system that stores solar energy and stabilizes CO 2 levels in the atmosphere. Here CuO–MgO nanocomposite (NC) is used for the effective PEC reduction of CO 2 into viable carbonaceous fuels. A simple and scalable sol–gel process was used for synthesizing the CuO–MgO NC. The synthesized NC’s structural, morphological and elemental analysis was performed using XRD, Raman spectroscopy, SEM and EDX. Optical properties were evaluated using UV spectroscopy. The electrochemical and PEC analysis was carried out to study the catalytic behavior of CuO–MgO towards CO 2 reduction by the cyclic voltammetry method. The CuO–MgO NC exhibited significantly improved PEC-CO 2 RR performance compared to electrochemical reduction alone. Moreover, the CuO–MgO NC displayed high structural stability and durability, which benchmark its potential towards PEC reduction to CO 2 into carbonaceous fuels. Graphical Abstract