Heteroatom-doped carbon materials and their composites as electrocatalysts for CO2 reduction

Abstract

Excessive emission of carbon dioxide (CO₂) has caused serious environmental issues, which threaten sustainable development of human civilization. Electrochemical reduction reactions of CO₂ (CO₂RR) to high-value fuels and chemicals may be one of the promising routes to solving this problem. One key challenge that hinders the development of CO₂RR techniques is the sluggish reaction kinetics, which could be addressed by high-efficiency electrocatalysts. Recently, heteroatom-doped carbon materials (H-CMs) have shown excellent catalytic activity and good stability simultaneously as electrocatalysts for CO₂RR. In this review, the fundamental principles, research techniques, and electrochemical performances for CO₂RR are first summarized in detail. Then, reaction mechanisms and corresponding catalytic sites for H-CMs in CO₂RR are discussed in depth. Finally, several possible strategies are proposed as guidance for the design and preparation of high performance H-CMs for CO₂RR.