Electrochemical Mass Reduction of Carbon Dioxide using Cu-Loaded Gas Diffusion Electrodes I. Preparation of Electrode and Reduction Products

Abstract

Electrochem. redn. of CO2 was carried out using Cu powder-loaded gas diffusion electrodes in aq. K2SO4 soln. The redn. products were CH4, C2H4, C2H5OH, CO, HCOO-, etc. These are almost the same ones as those obtained on a Cu plate electrode, and depend on the electrode potential. The structure and compn. of the gas diffusion electrode affect the faradaic efficiency and c.d. of the CO2 redn. The purer and the smaller particle size of the Cu powder, the electrode shows the higher activity for CO2 redn. and the higher efficiency for formation of CO and hydrocarbons. The electroredn. of CO2 can be carried out at about 2 orders of magnitude greater c.d. using a gas diffusion electrode prepd. under the optimum condition than that using a plate Cu electrode. [on SciFinder (R)]