Towards accelerated durability testing protocols for CO2 electrolysis

Abstract

In recent years, the electrochemical reduction of CO₂ (ECO₂RR) to value-added chemicals, fuels, and intermediates has been proposed as a promising option for utilizing excess CO₂ emissions. ECO₂RR could be integrated into existing CO₂-emitting industrial processes to mitigate emissions. To get to that stage, however, ECO₂RR cells and systems need to exhibit lifetimes of thousands of hours, similar to other commercially viable electrochemical systems. Accelerated durability testing (ADT) has been employed to rapidly screen the stability of these other electrochemical systems. Currently, most ECO₂RR studies only report durability for tens of hours. Yet, once the ECO₂RR field reaches longer system lifetimes as a whole, ADT studies will become necessary. In this perspective, we evaluate accelerated durability studies employed for fuel cells, water electrolyzers, and chlor alkali systems and apply the knowledge to suggest an appropriate ECO₂RR ADT protocol, which is currently lacking.