Publication date: 15th December 2025
The electrochemical reduction of CO₂ (CO₂RR) into ethylene represents a crucial strategy for carbon utilization and integration with renewable energy sources, offering a pathway toward carbon neutrality. Current limitations, primarily sluggish kinetics and mass transport constraints, necessitate the design of advanced hybrid catalyst architectures.
A multifunctional hybrid catalyst system integrating graphene oxide–modified metal–organic frameworks (MOFs, HKUST-1) with CeO₂-promoted Cu₂O oxides was developed to address these challenges. The parent Cu₂O–CeO₂ catalyst demonstrated efficient C–C coupling with ethylene faradaic efficiencies approaching 73% under optimized hydrophobic and gas flow conditions. Incorporating the MOFs establishes a synergistic interface where the high porosity and tunable surface chemistry of the MOF facilitates the local CO₂ enrichment, enhancing reactant availability and selectivity. The hybrid system achieved ethylene faradaic efficiencies of up to ≈75%, alongside a notable reduction in hydrogen evolution.
Two electrode configurations—bilayer and mixed—were examined to understand how catalyst architecture influences CO₂ accessibility and interfacial contact. The bilayer design improved CO₂ adsorption and diffusion through the MOF layer, while the mixed configuration provided superior interfacial connectivity and simultaneous CO₂ activation, resulting in more balanced product distribution. Evaluation in 0.5 M KHCO₃ electrolyte further offered insights into CO₂ transport and catalyst behavior under near-neutral, scalable conditions.
The work has been funded by the projects PID2022-138491OB-C33, CNS2022-135235 and the network E3TECH-PLUS (RED2022-134552- T) (MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033), co-funded by EU. M.A. is grateful to AGAUR-Generalitat de Catalunya for 2024 FI-1 00586 grant.
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