1
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Heßelmann M, Lee JK, Chae S, Tricker A, Keller RG, Wessling M, Su J, Kushner D, Weber AZ, Peng X. Pure-Water-Fed Forward-Bias Bipolar Membrane CO 2 Electrolyzer. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2024; 16:24649-24659. [PMID: 38711294 PMCID: PMC11103649 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c02799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/29/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
Coupling renewable electricity to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) electrochemically into carbon feedstocks offers a promising pathway to produce chemical fuels sustainably. While there has been success in developing materials and theory for CO2 reduction, the widespread deployment of CO2 electrolyzers has been hindered by challenges in the reactor design and operational stability due to CO2 crossover and (bi)carbonate salt precipitation. Herein, we design asymmetrical bipolar membranes assembled into a zero-gap CO2 electrolyzer fed with pure water, solving both challenges. By investigating and optimizing the anion-exchange-layer thickness, cathode differential pressure, and cell temperature, the forward-bias bipolar membrane CO2 electrolyzer achieves a CO faradic efficiency over 80% with a partial current density over 200 mA cm-2 at less than 3.0 V with negligible CO2 crossover. In addition, this electrolyzer achieves 0.61 and 2.1 mV h-1 decay rates at 150 and 300 mA cm-2 for 200 and 100 h, respectively. Postmortem analysis indicates that the deterioration of catalyst/polymer-electrolyte interfaces resulted from catalyst structural change, and ionomer degradation at reductive potential shows the decay mechanism. All these results point to the future research direction and show a promising pathway to deploy CO2 electrolyzers at scale for industrial applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Heßelmann
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
- Chemical
Process Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Forckenbeckstr. 51, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Jason Keonhag Lee
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Sudong Chae
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Andrew Tricker
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Robert Gregor Keller
- Chemical
Process Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Forckenbeckstr. 51, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Matthias Wessling
- Chemical
Process Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Forckenbeckstr. 51, 52074 Aachen, Germany
- DWI
Leibniz-Institute for Interactive Materials, Forckenbeckstr. 50, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Ji Su
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Douglas Kushner
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Adam Z. Weber
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Xiong Peng
- Energy
Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
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2
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Liu C, Lin O, Pidaparthy S, Ni H, Lyu Z, Zuo JM, Chen Q. 4D-STEM Mapping of Nanocrystal Reaction Dynamics and Heterogeneity in a Graphene Liquid Cell. NANO LETTERS 2024; 24:3890-3897. [PMID: 38526426 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c05015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
Chemical reaction kinetics at the nanoscale are intertwined with heterogeneity in structure and composition. However, mapping such heterogeneity in a liquid environment is extremely challenging. Here we integrate graphene liquid cell (GLC) transmission electron microscopy and four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy to image the etching dynamics of gold nanorods in the reaction media. Critical to our experiment is the small liquid thickness in a GLC that allows the collection of high-quality electron diffraction patterns at low dose conditions. Machine learning-based data-mining of the diffraction patterns maps the three-dimensional nanocrystal orientation, groups spatial domains of various species in the GLC, and identifies newly generated nanocrystallites during reaction, offering a comprehensive understanding on the reaction mechanism inside a nanoenvironment. This work opens opportunities in probing the interplay of structural properties such as phase and strain with solution-phase reaction dynamics, which is important for applications in catalysis, energy storage, and self-assembly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang Liu
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Oliver Lin
- Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Saran Pidaparthy
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Haoyang Ni
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Zhiheng Lyu
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Jian-Min Zuo
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
- Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Qian Chen
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
- Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
- Materials Research Laboratory, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
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3
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Merkens S, Tollan C, De Salvo G, Bejtka K, Fontana M, Chiodoni A, Kruse J, Iriarte-Alonso MA, Grzelczak M, Seifert A, Chuvilin A. Toward sub-second solution exchange dynamics in flow reactors for liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2522. [PMID: 38514605 PMCID: PMC10957994 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46842-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy is a burgeoning experimental technique for monitoring nanoscale dynamics in a liquid environment, increasingly employing microfluidic reactors to control the composition of the sample solution. Current challenges comprise fast mass transport dynamics inside the central nanochannel of the liquid cell, typically flow cells, and reliable fixation of the specimen in the limited imaging area. In this work, we present a liquid cell concept - the diffusion cell - that satisfies these seemingly contradictory requirements by providing additional on-chip bypasses to allow high convective transport around the nanochannel in which diffusive transport predominates. Diffusion cell prototypes are developed using numerical mass transport models and fabricated on the basis of existing two-chip setups. Important hydrodynamic parameters, i.e., the total flow resistance, the flow velocity in the imaging area, and the time constants of mixing, are improved by 2-3 orders of magnitude compared to existing setups. The solution replacement dynamics achieved within seconds already match the mixing timescales of many ex-situ scenarios, and further improvements are possible. Diffusion cells can be easily integrated into existing liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy workflows, provide correlation of results with ex-situ experiments, and can create additional research directions addressing fast nanoscale processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Merkens
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
- Department of Physics, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea (UPV/EHU), 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
| | - Christopher Tollan
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Giuseppe De Salvo
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- Department of Physics, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea (UPV/EHU), 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Katarzyna Bejtka
- Center for Sustainable Future Technologies@Polito, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Via Livorno, 60, 10144, Torino, TO, Italy
- Department of Applied Science and Technology (DISAT), Politecnico di Torino, corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Torino, Italy
| | - Marco Fontana
- Center for Sustainable Future Technologies@Polito, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Via Livorno, 60, 10144, Torino, TO, Italy
- Department of Applied Science and Technology (DISAT), Politecnico di Torino, corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129, Torino, Italy
| | - Angelica Chiodoni
- Center for Sustainable Future Technologies@Polito, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Via Livorno, 60, 10144, Torino, TO, Italy
| | - Joscha Kruse
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Maiara Aime Iriarte-Alonso
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- TECNIPESA IDENTIFICACION SL, Parque Empresarial Zuatzu, Edificio Donosti 1-3, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Marek Grzelczak
- Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 4, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- Centro de Física de Materiales CSIC-UPV/EHU, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 5, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Andreas Seifert
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, 48009, Bilbao, Spain
| | - Andrey Chuvilin
- CIC nanoGUNE BRTA, Tolosa Hiribidea 76, 20018, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, 48009, Bilbao, Spain
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4
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Abdellah AM, Ismail F, Siig OW, Yang J, Andrei CM, DiCecco LA, Rakhsha A, Salem KE, Grandfield K, Bassim N, Black R, Kastlunger G, Soleymani L, Higgins D. Impact of palladium/palladium hydride conversion on electrochemical CO 2 reduction via in-situ transmission electron microscopy and diffraction. Nat Commun 2024; 15:938. [PMID: 38296966 PMCID: PMC10831057 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45096-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Electrochemical conversion of CO2 offers a sustainable route for producing fuels and chemicals. Pd-based catalysts are effective for converting CO2 into formate at low overpotentials and CO/H2 at high overpotentials, while undergoing poorly understood morphology and phase structure transformations under reaction conditions that impact performance. Herein, in-situ liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy and select area diffraction measurements are applied to track the morphology and Pd/PdHx phase interconversion under reaction conditions as a function of electrode potential. These studies identify the degradation mechanisms, including poisoning and physical structure changes, occurring in PdHx/Pd electrodes. Constant potential density functional theory calculations are used to probe the reaction mechanisms occurring on the PdHx structures observed under reaction conditions. Microkinetic modeling reveals that the intercalation of *H into Pd is essential for formate production. However, the change in electrochemical CO2 conversion selectivity away from formate and towards CO/H2 at increasing overpotentials is due to electrode potential dependent changes in the reaction energetics and not a consequence of morphology or phase structure changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed M Abdellah
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Fatma Ismail
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Oliver W Siig
- CatTheory, Department of Physics, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Jie Yang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Carmen M Andrei
- Canadian Centre for Electron Microscopy, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | | | - Amirhossein Rakhsha
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Kholoud E Salem
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Kathryn Grandfield
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- School of Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Nabil Bassim
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Canadian Centre for Electron Microscopy, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Robert Black
- National Research Council of Canada, Energy, Mining, and Environment Research Centre, Mississauga, ON, Canada
| | - Georg Kastlunger
- CatTheory, Department of Physics, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Leyla Soleymani
- School of Biomedical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
- Department of Engineering Physics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Drew Higgins
- Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
- Canadian Centre for Electron Microscopy, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
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5
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Bijelić L, Ruiz-Zepeda F, Hodnik N. The role of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy in unraveling the structure-property relationships of Pt-based fuel cells electrocatalysts. Inorg Chem Front 2024; 11:323-341. [PMID: 38235274 PMCID: PMC10790562 DOI: 10.1039/d3qi01998e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
Platinum-based fuel cell electrocatalysts are structured on a nano level in order to extend their active surface area and maximize the utilization of precious and scarce platinum. Their performance is dictated by the atomic arrangement of their surface layers atoms via structure-property relationships. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) are the preferred methods for characterizing these catalysts, due to their capacity to achieve local atomic-level resolutions. Size, morphology, strain and local composition are just some of the properties of Pt-based nanostructures that can be obtained by (S)TEM. Furthermore, advanced methods of (S)TEM are able to provide insights into the quasi-in situ, in situ or even operando stability of these nanostructures. In this review, we present state-of-the-art applications of (S)TEM in the investigation and interpretation of structure-activity and structure-stability relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lazar Bijelić
- Laboratory for Electrocatalysis, Department of Materials Chemistry, National Insititute of Chemistry Hajdrihova 19 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia
- University of Nova Gorica Vipavska 13 Nova Gorica SI-5000 Slovenia
| | - Francisco Ruiz-Zepeda
- Laboratory for Electrocatalysis, Department of Materials Chemistry, National Insititute of Chemistry Hajdrihova 19 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia
- Department of Physics and Chemistry of Materials, Institute for Metals and Technology IMT Lepi pot 11 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia
| | - Nejc Hodnik
- Laboratory for Electrocatalysis, Department of Materials Chemistry, National Insititute of Chemistry Hajdrihova 19 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia
- University of Nova Gorica Vipavska 13 Nova Gorica SI-5000 Slovenia
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6
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Chee SW, Lunkenbein T, Schlögl R, Roldán Cuenya B. Operando Electron Microscopy of Catalysts: The Missing Cornerstone in Heterogeneous Catalysis Research? Chem Rev 2023; 123:13374-13418. [PMID: 37967448 PMCID: PMC10722467 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 10/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
Heterogeneous catalysis in thermal gas-phase and electrochemical liquid-phase chemical conversion plays an important role in our modern energy landscape. However, many of the structural features that drive efficient chemical energy conversion are still unknown. These features are, in general, highly distinct on the local scale and lack translational symmetry, and thus, they are difficult to capture without the required spatial and temporal resolution. Correlating these structures to their function will, conversely, allow us to disentangle irrelevant and relevant features, explore the entanglement of different local structures, and provide us with the necessary understanding to tailor novel catalyst systems with improved productivity. This critical review provides a summary of the still immature field of operando electron microscopy for thermal gas-phase and electrochemical liquid-phase reactions. It focuses on the complexity of investigating catalytic reactions and catalysts, progress in the field, and analysis. The forthcoming advances are discussed in view of correlative techniques, artificial intelligence in analysis, and novel reactor designs.
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Affiliation(s)
- See Wee Chee
- Department
of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber Institute
of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Thomas Lunkenbein
- Department
of Inorganic Chemistry, Fritz-Haber Institute
of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert Schlögl
- Department
of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber Institute
of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Beatriz Roldán Cuenya
- Department
of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber Institute
of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
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7
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Yang F, Lopez Luna M, Haase FT, Escalera-López D, Yoon A, Rüscher M, Rettenmaier C, Jeon HS, Ortega E, Timoshenko J, Bergmann A, Chee SW, Roldan Cuenya B. Spatially and Chemically Resolved Visualization of Fe Incorporation into NiO Octahedra during the Oxygen Evolution Reaction. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:21465-21474. [PMID: 37726200 PMCID: PMC10557136 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c07158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/21/2023]
Abstract
The activity of Ni (hydr)oxides for the electrochemical evolution of oxygen (OER), a key component of the overall water splitting reaction, is known to be greatly enhanced by the incorporation of Fe. However, a complete understanding of the role of cationic Fe species and the nature of the catalyst surface under reaction conditions remains unclear. Here, using a combination of electrochemical cell and conventional transmission electron microscopy, we show how the surface of NiO electrocatalysts, with initially well-defined surface facets, restructures under applied potential and forms an active NiFe layered double (oxy)hydroxide (NiFe-LDH) when Fe3+ ions are present in the electrolyte. Continued OER under these conditions, however, leads to the creation of additional FeOx aggregates. Electrochemically, the NiFe-LDH formation correlates with a lower onset potential toward the OER, whereas the formation of the FeOx aggregates is accompanied by a gradual decrease in the OER activity. Complementary insight into the catalyst near-surface composition, structure, and chemical state is further extracted using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, operando Raman spectroscopy, and operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy together with measurements of Fe uptake by the electrocatalysts using time-resolved inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Notably, we identified that the catalytic deactivation under stationary conditions is linked to the degradation of in situ-created NiFe-LDH. These insights exemplify the complexity of the active state formation and show how its structural and morphological evolution under different applied potentials can be directly linked to the catalyst activation and degradation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fengli Yang
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Mauricio Lopez Luna
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Felix T. Haase
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Daniel Escalera-López
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Aram Yoon
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Martina Rüscher
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Clara Rettenmaier
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Hyo Sang Jeon
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Eduardo Ortega
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Janis Timoshenko
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Arno Bergmann
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - See Wee Chee
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Beatriz Roldan Cuenya
- Department of Interface Science, Fritz-Haber-Institute of the Max-Planck Society, 14195 Berlin, Germany
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8
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Yang Y, Shao YT, Abruña HD, Muller DA, Yang P. Operando Electrochemical Liquid-Cell 4D-STEM Studies of Dynamic Evolution of Cu Nanocatalysts for CO2 Reduction. MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF MICROSCOPY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, MICROBEAM ANALYSIS SOCIETY, MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 2023; 29:1300-1301. [PMID: 37613404 DOI: 10.1093/micmic/ozad067.665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Yao Yang
- Department of Chemistry, Miller Institute, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
- School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Yu-Tsun Shao
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Héctor D Abruña
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - David A Muller
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
| | - Peidong Yang
- Department of Chemistry, Miller Institute, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
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9
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Yang Y, Louisia S, Yu S, Jin J, Roh I, Chen C, Fonseca Guzman MV, Feijóo J, Chen PC, Wang H, Pollock CJ, Huang X, Shao YT, Wang C, Muller DA, Abruña HD, Yang P. Operando studies reveal active Cu nanograins for CO 2 electroreduction. Nature 2023; 614:262-269. [PMID: 36755171 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05540-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 70.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Abstract
Carbon dioxide electroreduction facilitates the sustainable synthesis of fuels and chemicals1. Although Cu enables CO2-to-multicarbon product (C2+) conversion, the nature of the active sites under operating conditions remains elusive2. Importantly, identifying active sites of high-performance Cu nanocatalysts necessitates nanoscale, time-resolved operando techniques3-5. Here, we present a comprehensive investigation of the structural dynamics during the life cycle of Cu nanocatalysts. A 7 nm Cu nanoparticle ensemble evolves into metallic Cu nanograins during electrolysis before complete oxidation to single-crystal Cu2O nanocubes following post-electrolysis air exposure. Operando analytical and four-dimensional electrochemical liquid-cell scanning transmission electron microscopy shows the presence of metallic Cu nanograins under CO2 reduction conditions. Correlated high-energy-resolution time-resolved X-ray spectroscopy suggests that metallic Cu, rich in nanograin boundaries, supports undercoordinated active sites for C-C coupling. Quantitative structure-activity correlation shows that a higher fraction of metallic Cu nanograins leads to higher C2+ selectivity. A 7 nm Cu nanoparticle ensemble, with a unity fraction of active Cu nanograins, exhibits sixfold higher C2+ selectivity than the 18 nm counterpart with one-third of active Cu nanograins. The correlation of multimodal operando techniques serves as a powerful platform to advance our fundamental understanding of the complex structural evolution of nanocatalysts under electrochemical conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Yang
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Sheena Louisia
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Sunmoon Yu
- Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jianbo Jin
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Inwhan Roh
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Chubai Chen
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Maria V Fonseca Guzman
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Julian Feijóo
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Peng-Cheng Chen
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Kavli Energy NanoScience Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Hongsen Wang
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | | | - Xin Huang
- Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Yu-Tsun Shao
- School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Cheng Wang
- Advanced Light Source, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - David A Muller
- School of Applied and Engineering Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.,Kavli Institute at Cornell for Nanoscale Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Héctor D Abruña
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.,Kavli Institute at Cornell for Nanoscale Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Peidong Yang
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Chemical Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Kavli Energy NanoScience Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA.
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10
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Xu X, Valavanis D, Ciocci P, Confederat S, Marcuccio F, Lemineur JF, Actis P, Kanoufi F, Unwin PR. The New Era of High-Throughput Nanoelectrochemistry. Anal Chem 2023; 95:319-356. [PMID: 36625121 PMCID: PMC9835065 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.2c05105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 31.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Xiangdong Xu
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, U.K.
| | | | - Paolo Ciocci
- Université
Paris Cité, ITODYS, CNRS, F-75013 Paris, France
| | - Samuel Confederat
- School
of Electronic and Electrical Engineering and Pollard Institute, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.,Bragg
Centre for Materials Research, University
of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.
| | - Fabio Marcuccio
- School
of Electronic and Electrical Engineering and Pollard Institute, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.,Bragg
Centre for Materials Research, University
of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.,Faculty
of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
| | | | - Paolo Actis
- School
of Electronic and Electrical Engineering and Pollard Institute, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.,Bragg
Centre for Materials Research, University
of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.,
| | | | - Patrick R. Unwin
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, U.K.,
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