High faradic efficiency of CO2 conversion to formic acid catalyzed by Cu2O hollow-dices

Abstract

Cu2O has been intensively studied as an efficient catalyst for CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). By various methods for fine-tuning the morphology and surface modification, high selectivity and activity of different products can be achieved. Here, we report a novel Cu2O nanostructure design by facet-controlled etching, during which the catalyst structure switched from a cuboctahedron architecture to a hollow dice-like structure. The as-etched catalysts exhibit a high Faradic efficiency of formic acid, reaching 75.1% at a low potential of -1.0 V. Further characterizations indicate that the performance enhancement is attributed to the increased oxygen vacancies induced by the etching process. Our Cu2O nanostructure design provides a new approach for high-efficiency catalysts for formic acid production at low potentials.