Enhanced CO 2 reduction with hydrophobic cationic-ionomer layer-modified zero-gap MEA in acidic electrolyte.

A hydrophobic cationic-ionomer layer of quaternary ammonium poly( N -methyl-piperidine- co-p -terphenyl) and PTFE is presented to enhance the CO 2 electroreduction in a zero-gap membrane electrode assembly (MEA) electrolyzer under acidic and low alkali ion concentration conditions. The modified MEA achieved a maximum CO faradaic efficiency of 95.6% at 100 mA cm -2 .