Efficient solar-driven electrochemical CO2 reduction to hydrocarbons and oxygenates

Gurudayal; James Bullock; Dávid F. Srankó; Clarissa M. Towle; Yanwei Lum; Mark Hettick; M. C. Scott; Ali Javey; Joel Ager

doi:10.1039/C7EE01764B

Efficient solar-driven electrochemical CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons and oxygenates†

Gurudayal,

^abc James Bullock,^de Dávid F. Srankó,

^af Clarissa M. Towle,

^ce Yanwei Lum,

^ace Mark Hettick,

^de M. C. Scott,^cg Ali Javey

^de and Joel Ager

*^abce

Author affiliations

* Corresponding authors

^a Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
E-mail: jwager@lbl.gov

^b Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

^c Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

^d Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

^e Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

^f Hungarian Academy of Sciences Centre for Energy Research, Surface Chemistry and Catalysis Department, Konkoly-Thege Miklós út 29-33, H-1121 Budapest, Hungary

^g National Center for Electron Microscopy, Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

Abstract

Solar to chemical energy conversion could provide an alternative to mankind's unsustainable use of fossil fuels. One promising approach is the electrochemical reduction of CO₂ into chemical products, in particular hydrocarbons and oxygenates which are formed by multi-electron transfer reactions. Here, a nanostructured Cu–Ag bimetallic cathode is utilized to selectively and efficiently facilitate these reactions. When operated in an electrolysis cell, the cathode provides a constant energetic efficiency for hydrocarbon and oxygenate production. As a result, when coupled to Si photovoltaic cells, solar conversion efficiencies of 3–4% to the target products are achieved for 0.35 to 1 Sun illumination. Use of a four-terminal III–V/Si tandem solar cell configuration yields a conversion efficiency to hydrocarbons and oxygenates exceeding 5% at 1 Sun illumination. This study provides a clear framework for the future advancement of efficient solar-driven CO₂ reduction devices.

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Article information

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C7EE01764B
Article type: Paper
Submitted: 24 Jun 2017
Accepted: 31 Aug 2017
First published: 31 Aug 2017

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Energy Environ. Sci., 2017,10, 2222-2230

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Efficient solar-driven electrochemical CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons and oxygenates

Gurudayal, J. Bullock, D. F. Srankó, C. M. Towle, Y. Lum, M. Hettick, M. C. Scott, A. Javey and J. Ager, Energy Environ. Sci., 2017, 10, 2222 DOI: 10.1039/C7EE01764B

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Energy & Environmental Science

Efficient solar-driven electrochemical CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons and oxygenates†

Abstract

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Efficient solar-driven electrochemical CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons and oxygenates

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