Synergistic Biphasic Copper Catalysts for High‐Efficiency CO2 Electroreduction to Ethylene and Multicarbon Products

The copper species derived from the two distinct phase structures after catalyst reconstruction exhibit unique functionalities. CCB enhances the adsorption of intermediate *CO, while CuO facilitates the H₂O decomposition to provide protons for the formation of *CHO, synergistically promoting the coupling of *CO–*CHO.

Abstract

The electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into multicarbon (C₂₊) products via copper-based catalysts presents a promising approach for enhancing the high-value utilization of CO₂. However, achieving high selectivity for C₂₊ products remains a significant challenge. In this study, we have engineered a copper-based biphasic catalyst comprising both copper carbonate basic and copper oxide (CCB/CuO), which demonstrates superior selectivity for C₂₊ products. The restructured catalyst retains a loose, porous microsphere secondary structure, providing ample active space for reactants and intermediates. In situ infrared spectroscopy reveals that CuO facilitates the activation of H₂O to supply the requisite protons, while CCB enhances the adsorption of the intermediate *CO, synergistically contributing to the formation of C₂₊ products. As a result, the optimized CCB/CuO catalyst achieves Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 52.7% for C₂H₄ and 79.1% for C₂₊ products, with FE_C2H4 remaining above 40% for a duration of 10 h.

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