Highly effective CO2 electroreduction to formate boosted by Ce-doping on Indium oxide electrocatalysts

doi:10.1016/j.jmst.2024.10.046

Abstract

Abstract: Electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) with high selectivity to generate value-added chemical products and fuels, utilizing renewable electricity sources, offers an effective approach to address the continued increase in atmospheric CO₂. Here, we report cerium (Ce)-doped indium oxide (In₂O₃) electrocatalyst generated in situ on carbon paper (Ce-In₂O₃/CP), and its application in the electrochemical reduction of CO₂ (CO₂RR) to formate formation with high Faradaic efficiency (FE) (reaching 97.6 % at -1.7 V vs. Ag/AgCl) and excellent stability. Experimental analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculations indicate that doping Ce onto the (222) plane of In₂O₃ induces lattice distortion, which promotes electron transfer from Ce to In while adjusting the local electronic structure of the In atoms around Ce, making them more favorable for the adsorption of *OOCH intermediates and effectively lowering the energy barrier of the rate-determining step. Furthermore, Ce doping lowers the overpotential required for formate production and suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), effectively enhancing the selectivity of formate.

Key words: Electrochemical CO₂ reduction, Ce-doped In₂O₃, Formate, High selectivity, DFT calculation

Ziyuan Yang, Yuxia Jin, Xiaowei An, Zhongbao Feng, Peng Luo, Yusrin Ramli, Changrui Feng, Yifan Zhou, Juan Zhang, Shasha Li, Peifen Wang, Xiao Du, Xiaogang Hao, Abuliti Abudula, Guoqing Guan. Highly effective CO₂ electroreduction to formate boosted by Ce-doping on Indium oxide electrocatalysts[J]. J. Mater. Sci. Technol., 2025, 224: 159-168.

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Highly effective CO₂ electroreduction to formate boosted by Ce-doping on Indium oxide electrocatalysts

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