Continuous Production of Ethylene and Hydrogen Peroxide from Paired Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction and Water Oxidation

Mavrikis S, Nieuwoudt M, Göltz M, Ehles S, Körner A, Hutzler A, Fossy E, Zervas A, Brai O, Wegener M, Doerrfuss F, Bouwman P, Rosiwal S, Wang L, Ponce de León C (2024)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2024

Journal

Advanced Energy Materials Wiley

DOI: 10.1002/aenm.202304247

Abstract

Paired electrolysis offers an auspicious strategy for the generation of high-value chemicals, at both the anode and cathode, in an integrated electrochemical reactor. Through efficient electron utilization, routine product misuse at overlooked electrodes can be prevented. Here, an original paired electrosynthetic system is reported that can convert CO2 to ethylene (C2H4) at the cathode, and water to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) at the anode under a single pass of electric charge. Amongst various investigated copper (Cu) nanomorphologies, the bespoke mixed Cu nanowire/nanoparticle catalyst recorded a peak C2H4 Faraday efficiency (FE) of 60% following 370 h of electrolysis at 200 mA cm−2, while the tailored boron-doped diamond (BDD) anode accumulated an unprecedented ≈1% w/w of H2O2 in 4 m K2CO3 upon applying 300 mA cm−2 for 10 h. When paired, the dual C2H4-H2O2 electrochemical cell attains a combined FE of 120% for 50 h at 200 mA cm−2, a combined energy efficiency (EE) of 69%, and a 50% decrease in the overall electrical energy consumption (EEC) compared to the individual electrosynthesis of C2H4 and H2O2.

Authors with CRIS profile

Maximilian Göltz Lehrstuhl für Werkstoffwissenschaften (Werkstoffkunde und Technologie der Metalle) Stefan Rosiwal Lehrstuhl für Werkstoffwissenschaften (Werkstoffkunde und Technologie der Metalle)

Involved external institutions

University of Southampton GB United Kingdom (GB) Forschungszentrum Jülich / Research Centre Jülich (FZJ) DE Germany (DE) Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co. KG DE Germany (DE) University of Patras (UPATRAS) GR Greece (GR)

How to cite

APA:

Mavrikis, S., Nieuwoudt, M., Göltz, M., Ehles, S., Körner, A., Hutzler, A.,... Ponce de León, C. (2024). Continuous Production of Ethylene and Hydrogen Peroxide from Paired Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction and Water Oxidation. Advanced Energy Materials. https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.202304247

MLA:

Mavrikis, Sotirios, et al. "Continuous Production of Ethylene and Hydrogen Peroxide from Paired Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction and Water Oxidation." Advanced Energy Materials (2024).

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