Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes
The photoelectrochemical reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to syngas that is used for many practical applications has been emerging as a promising technique to relieve the increase of CO<sub>2</sub> in the atmosphere. Si has been considered to be one of the most promising materials...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2020-05-01
|
| Series: | Applied Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/10/3487 |
| _version_ | 1827716706308456448 |
|---|---|
| author | Changyeon Kim Seokhoon Choi Min-Ju Choi Sol A Lee Sang Hyun Ahn Soo Young Kim Ho Won Jang |
| author_facet | Changyeon Kim Seokhoon Choi Min-Ju Choi Sol A Lee Sang Hyun Ahn Soo Young Kim Ho Won Jang |
| author_sort | Changyeon Kim |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The photoelectrochemical reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to syngas that is used for many practical applications has been emerging as a promising technique to relieve the increase of CO<sub>2</sub> in the atmosphere. Si has been considered to be one of the most promising materials for photoelectrodes, but the integration of electrocatalysts is essential for the photoelectrochemical reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> using Si. We report an enhancement of catalytic activity for CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction by Ag catalysts of tuned morphology, active sites, and electronic structure through reducing anodic treatment. Our proposed photocathode structure, a SiO<sub>2</sub> patterned <i>p</i>-Si photocathode with these reduced Ag catalysts, that was fabricated using electron-beam deposition and electrodeposition methods, provides a low onset-potential of −0.16 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), a large saturated photocurrent density of −9 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> at −1.23 V vs. RHE, and faradaic efficiency for CO of 47% at −0.6 V vs. RHE. This photocathode can produce syngas in the ratio from 1:1 to 1:3, which is an appropriate proportion for practical application. This work presents a new approach for designing photocathodes with a balanced catalytic activity and light absorption to improve the photoelectrochemical application for not only CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction, but also water splitting or N<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:45:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-75e3f69054c14fcea799c6de583c5f96 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:45:49Z |
| publishDate | 2020-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-75e3f69054c14fcea799c6de583c5f962023-11-20T00:50:21ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172020-05-011010348710.3390/app10103487Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si PhotocathodesChangyeon Kim0Seokhoon Choi1Min-Ju Choi2Sol A Lee3Sang Hyun Ahn4Soo Young Kim5Ho Won Jang6Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaSchool of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 06974, KoreaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, KoreaDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, KoreaThe photoelectrochemical reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to syngas that is used for many practical applications has been emerging as a promising technique to relieve the increase of CO<sub>2</sub> in the atmosphere. Si has been considered to be one of the most promising materials for photoelectrodes, but the integration of electrocatalysts is essential for the photoelectrochemical reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> using Si. We report an enhancement of catalytic activity for CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction by Ag catalysts of tuned morphology, active sites, and electronic structure through reducing anodic treatment. Our proposed photocathode structure, a SiO<sub>2</sub> patterned <i>p</i>-Si photocathode with these reduced Ag catalysts, that was fabricated using electron-beam deposition and electrodeposition methods, provides a low onset-potential of −0.16 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), a large saturated photocurrent density of −9 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> at −1.23 V vs. RHE, and faradaic efficiency for CO of 47% at −0.6 V vs. RHE. This photocathode can produce syngas in the ratio from 1:1 to 1:3, which is an appropriate proportion for practical application. This work presents a new approach for designing photocathodes with a balanced catalytic activity and light absorption to improve the photoelectrochemical application for not only CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction, but also water splitting or N<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/10/3487photoelectrochemicalCO<sub>2</sub> reduction reactionAg catalystsSi photocathodesyngas production |
| spellingShingle | Changyeon Kim Seokhoon Choi Min-Ju Choi Sol A Lee Sang Hyun Ahn Soo Young Kim Ho Won Jang Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes Applied Sciences photoelectrochemical CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction Ag catalysts Si photocathode syngas production |
| title | Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes |
| title_full | Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes |
| title_fullStr | Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes |
| title_short | Photoelectrochemical Reduction of CO<sub>2</sub> to Syngas by Reduced Ag Catalysts on Si Photocathodes |
| title_sort | photoelectrochemical reduction of co sub 2 sub to syngas by reduced ag catalysts on si photocathodes |
| topic | photoelectrochemical CO<sub>2</sub> reduction reaction Ag catalysts Si photocathode syngas production |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/10/3487 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT changyeonkim photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT seokhoonchoi photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT minjuchoi photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT solalee photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT sanghyunahn photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT sooyoungkim photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes AT howonjang photoelectrochemicalreductionofcosub2subtosyngasbyreducedagcatalystsonsiphotocathodes |