Phthalocyanine and porphyrin catalysts for electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide: Progress in regulation strategies and applications

Electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 (eCO2RR) is an effective way to convert CO2 into value-added products. As an important branch of eCO2RR, molecular catalysts have been intensively studied. Phthalocyanines and porphyrins are representatives of molecular catalysts with efficient eCO2RR performance, having well-defined metal-pyrrole coordination bond conformations, and adjustable metal coordination atoms. The ligand structures and the ability to introduce exo-ligand bonds make phthalocyanines and porphyrins a broad and in-depth research scope for catalytic CO2 reduction. With reference to the information of phthalocyanines and porphyrins, this work provides a critical review on recent research development in the molecular regulatory strategies of phthalocyanine and porphyrin, including central metal, physical hybrid method, peripheral substituents, substrates, membranes, periodic structures (MOF and COF), single atom, and external reactors, and provided directions for future research that could be improved.