Effect of copper oxide electrocatalyst on CO2 reduction using Co3O4 as anode

The reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) to products electrochemically (RCPE) in 0.5 M NaHCO3 and Na2CO3 liquid phase electrolyte solutions was investigated. Cobalt oxide (Co3O4) as anode and cuprous oxide (Cu2O) as the cathode were considered, respectively. The impacts of applied potential with time of reaction during reduction of CO2 to products were studied. The anode and cathode were prepared by depositing electrocatalysts on the graphite plate. Ultra-fast liquid chromatography (UFLC) was used to analyze the products obtained from the reduction of CO2. The feasible way of reduction by applying voltages with current densities was clearly correlated. The results illustrate the capability of electrocatalyst successfully to remove atmospheric CO2 in the form of valuable chemicals. Maximum Faradaic efficiency of ethanol was 98.1% at 2 V and for formic acid (36.6%) at 1.5 V was observed in NaHCO3. On the other hand, in Na2CO3 electrolyte solution maximum efficiency for ethanol was 55.21% at 1.5 V and 25.1% for formic acid at 2 V. In both electrolytes other end products like methanol, propanol, formaldehyde and acetic acid were formed at various applied voltage and output current densities.