One lithium battery can realize industrial-grade conversion of carbon dioxide
The industrial-grade conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) can be realized by using a lithium-ion battery. This is the latest research progress of the research group of Xiao Li and Zhuang Lin of the School of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences on the electrochemical conversion of CO2. This will completely dispel the industry's concerns about CO2 electrochemical conversion technology. At the same time, due to the mild working conditions, high temperature and high pressure are not required, the technical cost can be greatly reduced.
The Royal Society of Chemistry's flagship journal Energy u0026 Environmental Science (Energy u0026 Environmental Science, with an impact factor of 30+) recently published this result online. Doctoral student Yin Zhenglei and Peng Hanqing is the co-first author of the paper.
The conversion of CO2 into liquid fuels or high value-added chemicals is a very popular research field in recent years. Among them, electrochemical methods are the most promising way, because electrochemistry can Direct use of electricity generated from renewable energy sources such as solar energy and wind energy. However, the prospect of the electrochemical reduction of CO2 technology has been controversial. Due to the low solubility of CO2 in aqueous solutions (about 40 mmol/L), the industrial application scale of this technology will be limited. Breaking through the solubility limit of CO2 requires the use of gas diffusion electrodes, especially the use of polymer electrolytes instead of traditional liquid electrolytes. However, due to the lack of suitable high-performance alkaline polymer electrolyte (APE), most of the current CO2 electrolyzers have to adopt the design of flowing electrolyte.
Xiao Li and Zhuang Lin’s research group have carried out nearly two decades of research in Alkaline Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cells (APEFC). Breakthroughs have been continuously made in other areas. At the same time, they actively explored the application of high-performance APE to CO2 electrolyzers, and finally achieved an important breakthrough. The APE-based CO2 electrolyzer works under mild conditions (room temperature to 90 degrees Celsius) and uses pure water without adding any liquid electrolyte. The current density of the electrolyzer is as high as 500 mA/cm2 @ 3 V, which is the same as the current of industrial water electrolysis The density is equivalent, and the Faraday efficiency of CO2 to CO conversion reaches 90%. (Source: Wuhan University News Network)
