NiCu-based catalysts with high selectivity for electro–oxidation of glucose to formic acid

Electrochemical oxidation of glucose to high valuable chemicals is an attractive strategy to realize sustainable development. Herein, we report that nanostructured NiCu oxide (NiCuO) reveal excellent activity and selectivity toward electrooxidation of glucose, which is synthesized from bimetallic alloy-NiCu on three-dimensional Ni foam. Only 1.15 V and 1.39 V are needed to reach 10 and 100 mA cm−2 for glucose oxidation reaction (GOR), respectively. The integrated two-electrode glucose electrolytic cell can deliver 10 mA cm−2 at the voltage of 1.29 V. It is 360 mV less than overall water splitting at the same condition. The main liquid product of glucose electrooxidation is formic acid, and its Faradaic Efficiency and selectivity are around 94.6 % and 93.3 %, respectively. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations is applied to confirm that NiCuO catalyst could optimize the Gibbs free energy in reaction, which could enhance catalytic activity toward GOR. This study shows that electrolytic glucose is a promising and energy-saving technology for high value-added chemical production and clean energy supply in the future.