Engineering hydrophobicity on anion exchange membranes for stable CO2 electrochemical reduction in nonaqueous electrolytes

Abstract

Electrochemical CO₂ reduction (ECR) in aprotic electrolytes holds significant potential for mitigating CO₂ emissions while producing valuable chemicals. However, challenges such as the hydrogen evolution reaction and electrolyte crossover, caused by the hydrophilicity of the anion exchange membrane (AEM) used in the ECR system, greatly hinder its efficiency. This study introduces a facile hydrophobic modification strategy employing hydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as a cover layer for the AEM. This approach markedly enhances the ECR performance in the dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) catholyte.