Professor Wang Qiang's team from the College of Environmental Science and Engineering has recently published a review paper in the prestigious journal Energy & Environmental Science (IF=32.4). The paper, titled "Doping engineering of Cu-based catalysts for electrocatalytic CO2 reduction to multi-carbon products", features master student You Shiya as the first author, with Beijing Forestry University as the signature unit of the first author.

The electrocatalytic carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO2RR) is a promising technology that uses renewable energy sources to convert excess atmospheric CO2 into high-value multi-carbon (C2+) products. In the CO2RR mechanism, adsorbed *CO is recognized as a crucial intermediate, playing a pivotal role in facilitating the formation of C2+ products. Currently, Cu-based materials are the most effective catalysts in producing *CO and further coupling it to form C2+ products. However, mono-component Cu catalysts still face some challenges, such as low activity, selectivity, and poor stability. Doping engineering has emerged as a valuable strategy for enhancing the performance of Cu-based catalysts in CO2 electroreduction into C2+ products. This comprehensive review presents the recent advancements in CO2 electroreduction into C2+ products over heteroatom-doped Cu-based catalysts, encompassing metallic heteroatoms such as Pd, Au and Ag, as well as non-metallic heteroatoms like P, B and F. The mechanism of enhanced performance through heteroatom doping is specifically highlighted, providing helpful guidance and avenues for the rational design of Cu-based catalysts. Additionally, the review discusses the challenges and prospects associated with the CO2RR into C2+ products, offering a nuanced perspective on this subject.

This research received financial support from several major National Natural Science Foundation of China grants (52225003, 22109004, and 52300125) and was also backed by the "Five-Five" Engineering Research and Innovation Team initiative at Beijing Forestry University (BLRC2023B04).

Paper link: https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2024/ee/d4ee01325e

Written by You Shiya
Translated and edited by Song He
Reviewed by Yu Yangyang