Multi-metallic organic framework-derived materials for electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction

The motive to create effective electrocatalysts for the CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) is high due to the challenges of developing the energy sector and environmental remediation approaches. Among many types of electrocatalysts, multi-metallic metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) derived materials stand out for their exceptional catalytic CO2RR performance and high atomic utilization efficiency. Many attempts have been made to fine-tune their structure and realistic active site identification to improve their CO2RR performance to benchmark levels, but this is still a challenging feat. This necessitates investigation into analyzing the present data on atomically precise electrocatalysts and using the lessons learned for the development of novel approaches and the construction of superior catalysts. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of the advances in science and engineering, as well as the CO2RR performances, of multi-metallic MOFs, and derived materials. Then, we highlighted the links between the origin of activity and the structural properties of atomically distributed electrocatalysts and presented several crucial optimization methods for improving their catalytic performance. The main difficulties and possibilities of these electrocatalysts are also explored. Atomic-level insights from this review might be used to create CO2RR electrocatalysts with superior selectivity, activity, and durability in the future.