Carbon-coated nickel nanoparticles that make CO from CO2
N-doped carbon plus a carbon coat lets metallic Ni nanoparticles reach about 94% CO faradaic efficiency, suppressing hydrogen evolution.
Source
Carbon-supported Ni nanoparticles for efficient CO<sub>2</sub> electroreduction
Study at a glance
- Design
- Other — Pyrolyzed carbon-supported Ni nanoparticles for aqueous CO2-to-CO electrolysis with DFT
- N
- Electrocatalysis materials study — no sample N
- Population
- Ni nanoparticle catalysts on N-doped carbon supports
- Outcome
- CO faradaic efficiency and current density in CO2 electroreduction
Structured fields used in claim comparison tables when every cited study has a complete layer.
What they did
Authors pyrolyzed Ni with organic linkers and carbon black, characterized Ni loading (~3.6–4.0 wt%), XPS (Ni0, no Ni–N single-atom peak), HAADF-STEM (10–100 nm particles), and measured aqueous CO2-to-CO electrolysis plus DFT.
What they found
CO FE up to ~94% at −0.7 V vs RHE and 22.7 mA cm−2 at −1.1 V. Carbon coating plus N-doped support suppress HER. XPS/STEM argue metallic nanoparticles, not Ni single atoms or nitride.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Long-term industrial MEA stacks and C2+ products are not claimed; performance is compared to prior Ni catalysts, not a full techno-economic plant.
Key terms
- Faradaic efficiency (FE)
- Fraction of current that produces CO rather than H2.
- HER suppression
- Carbon coat/N-support that make H2 evolution less competitive.
- Ni0 nanoparticles
- Metallic nickel particles 10–100 nm, not isolated Ni–N4 sites.
- N-doped carbon
- Support with pyridinic/pyrrolic/graphitic nitrogen.
- CO2-to-CO
- Two-electron electroreduction to carbon monoxide.
Flashcards
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Peak CO FE is about:
Common questions
Best CO FE?
About 94% at −0.7 V vs RHE.
Current density cited?
22.7 mA cm−2 at −1.1 V.
Single atoms?
No: STEM 10–100 nm particles; no Ni–N XPS peak.
Ni loading?
~3.6–4.0 wt%.
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