journal article·2025-07

Self‐Assembled Monolayer Interface with Reconstructed Hydrogen‐Bond Network for Enhanced CO2 Electroreduction

Yuantao Wei, Jianrui Zhang, Boyang Li, Fuqing Yu, Mengyang Li, Yang Wang, Tianxi He, Jiexin Zhu, Shenghua Chen, Yaqiong Su, Shujiang Ding, Chunhui Xiao, Bao Yu Xia

Advanced Materials· Volume 37· Issue 29
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Abstract

Abstract CO2 electrolysis is a promising approach to reduce CO2 emissions while achieving high‐value multi‐carbon (C2+) products. Except for the key role of electrocatalyst for electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR), Reaction microenvironment is another critical factor influencing catalytic performance for these catalysts. Herein, a self‐assembled monolayer (SAM) is proposed with reconstructed hydrogen‐bond network to form an efficient three‐phase interface that admins mass transport and ion‐electron transfer. This approach is realized by co‐assembly of the fluorinated SAM (F‐SAM) and siloxane on commercial Cu catalyst (Cu@F‐Si composite catalyst). Molecular dynamics simulations (MDS) and interfacial species analysis show that the F‐SAM effectively facilitates CO2 mass transport, while the siloxane hydrogen bond network maintains an ideal H+/e− transfer pathway. Combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations, this strategy reveals the mechanism by which optimizing *H/*CO coverage enhances C2+ product selectivity. Ultimately, the Cu@F‐Si catalyst maintains a high current density of 502.5 mA cm−2 with over 85% C2+ Faradaic efficiency (FE) and operates stably for more than 100 h at ≈300 mA cm−2. This interface engineering strategy offers a promising solution for improving the efficiency of CO2RR, with broader applications in multiphase catalytic systems.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts · Molecular Junctions and Nanostructures · Ionic liquids properties and applications

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Engineering Research Center of Energy Storage Materials and Devices Ministry of Education School of Chemistry Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 China

Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry for Energy Conversion and Storage (Ministry of Education) Hubei Key Laboratory of Material Chemistry and Service Failure School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Huazhong University of Science and Technology Wuhan 430074 China

School of Physics Xidian University Xi'an 710071 China

School of Future Technology Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 China

Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering University of Toronto Toronto ON M5S 3G8 Canada

National Innovation Platform (Center) for Industry‐Education Integration of Energy Storage Technology Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 China

Center for Next‐Generation Energy Materials and School of Chemical Engineering Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) 2066, Seobu‐ro, Jangan‐gu Suwon Gyeonggi‐do 16419 Republic of Korea

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China

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