Regulating Cu Oxidation State for Electrocatalytic CO 2 Conversion into CO with Near-Unity Selectivity via Oxygen Spillover.

Cu-based catalysts are the most intensively studied in the field of electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction reaction (CO 2 RR), demonstrating the capacity to yield diverse C 1 and C 2+ products albeit with unsatisfactory selectivity. Manipulation of the oxidation state of Cu sites during CO 2 RR process proves advantageous in modulating the selectivity of productions, but poses a formidable challenge. Here, an oxygen spillover strategy is proposed to enhance the oxidation state of Cu during CO 2 RR by incorporating the oxygen donor Sb 2 O 4 . The Cu-Sb bimetallic oxide catalyst attains a remarkable CO 2 -to-CO selectivity approaching unity, in stark contrast to the diverse product distribution observed with bare CuO. The exceptional Faradaic efficiency of CO can be maintained across a wide range of potential windows of ≈700 mV in 1 m KOH, and remains independent of the Cu/Sb ratio (ranging from 0.1:1 to 10:1). Correlative calculations and experimental results reveal that oxygen spillover from Sb 2 O 4 to Cu sites maintains the relatively high valence state of Cu during CO 2 RR, which diminishes the binding strength of * CO, thereby achieving heightened selectivity in CO production. These findings propose the role of oxygen spillover in CO 2 RR over Cu-based catalysts, and shed light on the rational design of highly selective CO 2 reduction catalysts.