Electrocatalytic CO₂ reduction reaction with formamide-Ni@metal oxides

This study enhanced the growth of formamide-Ni(FA-Ni) condensates by adding various metal oxides to boost electrocatalytic CO2 reduction. FA-Ni@TiO2 achieved a 2.8-fold increase in partial CO current density compared to FA-Ni, outperforming other FA-Ni@metal oxides like Al2O3, Fe2O3, and ZnO. Fourier transform infrared analysis indicated that formamide adsorbs on TiO2and ZrO2through the -CHO group, leaving -NH2 available to interact with Ni. In contrast, Ni dispersion was not improved by Al2O3, Fe2O3, or ZnO due to their strong surface acidity. These metal oxides adsorbed formamide through -NH2, leaving no extra -NH2 to bind with Ni atoms. The enhanced CO2RR performance is due to the exposed Ni on metal oxides. This research offers new insights into developing substrates for single-atom catalysts.