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Enhanced Multicarbon Production via Pulsed Syngas Electroreduction on Ag-Decorated ZnO Nanoparticles

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Sustainable multicarbon production through syngas electroreduction is particularly attractive, as products such as ethanol, acetaldehyde, and ethylene offer significantly higher economic value and broader functional applications than single-carbon products. In this study, Ag/ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized and characterized with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) coupled with an electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) detector to confirm the nanoparticles size in the 10 nm range, in which Ag nanoparticles were located on the surface of ZnO nanoparticles. The electrocatalytic activity of Ag/ZnO nanoparticles was enhanced by the effective electron transfer between ZnO and Ag, promoting the multicarbon Faradaic efficiency (FE) from (8 ± 1)% for ZnO to (17 ± 3)% for ZnAg1.5 over 10 min of chronopotentiometry. Operando diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) directly linked this enhancement to dynamic surface chemistry, revealing ZnO as the primary active site, while Ag can facilitate electron transfer and stabilize reaction intermediates. Both techniques also suggested that surface-adsorbed water/OH – can act as a catalyst deactivator, leading to catalyst dissolution. Based on these insights, the potential was pulsed between 0.82 and −0.63 V vs RHE to remove accumulated water/OH – and regenerate active sites. This increased the single-pass FE to (54 ± 5)% with (37 ± 2)% selectivity toward ethanol. Together, these results demonstrate that rational interface design combined with dynamic potential modulation offers a powerful strategy for advancing syngas to multicarbon electrocatalysis.

Source: ACS Applied Energy Materials

DOI: 10.1021/acsaem.6c00220

Authors: Rocco Villano, Saman Mutahir, Yuval Fishler, Jeannie Z. Y. Tan, Juan José Villora-Picó, Xuyun Guo, James A. Sullivan, Haresh Manyar, Valeria Nicolosi, Leila Negahdar

Institutions: University College Dublin, Heriot-Watt University, Queen's University Belfast, Trinity College Dublin, Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research

Language: English

Topic: CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts

Subfield: Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

Field: Energy

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Affordable and clean energy, Responsible consumption and production, Climate action

Open Access status: green

Funders: Science Foundation Ireland, HORIZON EUROPE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions

Awards: Engineering of hierarchical porous structures based on novel 2D nanomaterials: towards the new generation of battery devices beyond Lithium, Programming catalytic surface reactions with dynamic kinetic oscillations, Carbon-neutral pathways of recycling marine plastic waste, AMBER_Phase 2

OpenAlex ID: W7140205692

FWCI:

Cites: 71

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