Sharma, Preetam K., Matam, Santhosh K., Khan, M. Danish, Ma, Ye, Li, Da, Roldan, Alberto  ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0353-9004, Drivas, Charalampos, Isaacs, Mark A., Guan, Shaoliang, Catlow, C. Richard A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1341-1541, Siritanaratkul, Bhavin, Cowan, Alexander J. and Yu, Eileen Hao
2026.
Cu-Ag gas diffusion electrodes for electrochemical CO2 reduction to multi-carbon products.
Journal of CO2 Utilization
110
, 103518.
10.1016/j.jcou.2026.103518
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Abstract
Electrochemical CO₂ reduction can produce low-carbon fuels using sustainable electricity, contributing to climate-change mitigation. In this work, we modify the surface of CuOx gas-diffusion electrodes (GDEs) with Ag using a simple spontaneous electrochemical deposition method. The prepared catalysts were tested in a three-chamber flow GDE reactor to evaluate their electrochemical performance and product distribution. Several products were obtained, including carbon monoxide, ethylene, ethanol, 1-propanol, and hydrogen. The addition of Ag on the Cu-GDE surface enhances the formation of C₂⁺ products and suppresses hydrogen evolution. A CuOx GDE with 8-min Ag deposition achieves a C₂⁺ faradaic efficiency of over 60% with a current density of 130 mA cm⁻² at −1.15 V vs RHE. Pseudo-in-situ X-ray photoelectron and Raman analyses indicate that copper oxide reduction is slower in CuOx-Ag GDEs than in pristine CuOx. Density functional theory calculations show that Ag promotes Cu migration toward the electrode surface, enabling stronger CO adsorption and facilitating further reduction to multi carbon C₂⁺products. The reduction in CO faradaic efficiency from 28% to 15% correlates with the increase in C₂⁺ efficiency from 35% to 65% for the CuOx-Ag (8-min) sample compared with pristine CuOx, supporting the theoretical findings. This study demonstrates the enhanced C₂⁺ selectivity of CuOx-Ag catalysts and provides mechanistic insight through pseudo-in-situ spectroscopy, offering guidance for the development of efficient systems for electrochemical CO₂ conversion to C₂⁺ compounds.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Status: | Published |
| Schools: | Research Institutes & Centres > Cardiff Catalysis Institute (CCI) Schools > Chemistry |
| ISSN: | 2212-9820 |
| Date of First Compliant Deposit: | 16 July 2026 |
| Date of Acceptance: | 2 July 2026 |
| Last Modified: | 04 Sep 2026 11:21 |
| URI: | https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/188239 |
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