A recent publication in Nature Communications by researchers from the Interface Science Department at the Fritz Haber Institute introduces a new advancement in the fight against climate change.
A recent publication in Nature Communications by researchers from the Interface Science Department at the Fritz Haber Institute introduces a new advancement in the fight against climate change. Their study, „Reversible metal cluster formation on Nitrogen-doped carbon controlling electrocatalyst particle size with subnanometer accuracy," showcases a novel method for understanding the mechanisms of carbon dioxide (CO2) re-utilization leading to fuels and chemicals. This work paves the road for the further optimization of this catalytic process driven by renewable electricity.
The core of this discovery lies in intriguing properties of catalysts composed of ultradispersed copper and nitrogen atoms incorporated into carbon. During the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction (CO2RR) process, which is a process used to transform CO2 into useful chemicals, these catalysts can dynamically change from having copper in the form of single atoms to forming small clusters and metal particles, known as nanoparticles, and then back again, once the applied electrical potential is lifted or changed to a more positive value This control over this reversible transformation provides a key for steering the structure of the catalyst, and, consequently, controlling the outcome of the CO2RR process, since the product selectivity strongly depends on the catalyst structure.
Read more at Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society
