Highly Selective Oxidation of Carbohydrates in an Efficient Electrochemical Energy Converter: Cogenerating Organic Electrosynthesis

Abstract

The selective electrochemical conversion of highly functionalized organic molecules into electricity, heat, and added-value chemicals for fine chemistry requires the development of highly selective, durable, and low-cost catalysts. Here, we propose an approach to make catalysts that can convert carbohydrates into chemicals selectively and produce electrical power and recoverable heat. A 100 % Faradaic yield was achieved for the selective oxidation of the anomeric carbon of glucose and its related carbohydrates (C1-position) without any function protection. Furthermore, the direct glucose fuel cell (DGFC) enables an open-circuit voltage of 1.1V in 0.5 m NaOH to be reached, a record. The optimized DGFC delivers an outstanding output power Pmax=2mW cm-2 with the selective conversion of 0.3 m glucose, which is of great interest for cogeneration. The purified reaction product will serve as a raw material in various industries, which thereby reduces the cost of the whole sustainable process.