Copper nanoparticle ensembles for selective electroreduction of CO2 to C2-C3 products

Electrochemical conversion of CO₂ to carbon-based products, which can be used directly as fuels or indirectly as fuel precursors, is suggested as one of the promising solutions for sustainability. Not only does this process allow using renewables such as solar electricity as energy input, but CO₂ emitted from the consumption process can be recycled back into fuels. The success of this technology depends on the value added to the product that forms from CO₂, and therefore it is important to facilitate multicarbon product generation. This work presents a copper-based catalyst, formed in situ from an ensemble of nanoparticles, that is able to selectively generate C₂-C₃ products at low overpotentials with good stability, where their efficient formation has been difficult to achieve.