FUNCTIONAL ROLE OF PYRIDINIUM BRONSTED ACID CATALYSTS DURING ELECTROCHEMICAL REDUCTION OF CO2 ON Pt(111)

摘要

A promising sustainable solution for solar energy harvesting and utilization is the synthesis of solar fuels through artificial photosynthesis. A viable approach is to design an integrated system that uses sunlight to drive water splitting, where H2O is oxidized to O2 (2H2O -> O2 + 4H~+ + 4e~-) while the released H+ are reduced to H2 (4H~+ + 4e~- -> 2H2) in a cathodic half-reaction. The reducing equivalents (H~+ + e~-) could also be used to reduce CO2 and form products such as formate, methane, or methanol. An outstanding challenge, however, is the development of system with efficient selectivity for CO2 reduction.