Unified effects of lanthanoid elements and magnetic fields on the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction

Abstract

This study systematically investigates how lanthanoid elements and electromagnetic fields work together to enhance the performance of nickel-based catalysts in the electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction reaction. First, we synthesized and analyzed 14 lanthanoid-doped Ni nanoparticle catalysts. The results show that doping with lanthanoids effectively modulates the nickel’s electronic structure, raising the CO faradaic efficiency from 72.8% in the undoped case to generally over 90%. Further research reveals that applying electric and magnetic fields have an equivalent effect on current density: the higher the external magnetic (or electric) field strength, the higher the current density. Finally, the performance enhancements from both the internal (electronic structure modulation) and external (magnetic or electric field) factors were found to be unified under one core idea – the promotion of charge-transfer processes. Consequently, this study presents unique perspectives on the unity in the diversity of factors governing the catalytic performance.