Abstract
Electrocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO(2)) into specific renewable fuels is an attractive way to mitigate the greenhouse effect and solve the energy crisis. Au(n)Cu(100-n)/C alloy nanoparticles (Au(n)Cu(100-n)/C NPs) with tunable compositions, a highly active crystal plane and a strained lattice were synthesized by the thermal solvent co-reduction method. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results show that Au(n)Cu(100-n)/C catalysts display a subtle lattice strain and dominant (111) crystal plane, which can be adjusted by the alloy composition. Electrochemical results show that Au(n)Cu(100-n)/C alloy catalysts for CO(2) reduction display high catalytic activity; in particular, the Faradaic efficiency of Au(75)Cu(25)/C is up to 92.6% for CO at -0.7 V (vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode), which is related to lattice shrinkage and the active facet. This research provides a new strategy with which to design strong and active nanoalloy catalysts with lattice mismatch and main active surfaces for CO(2) reduction reaction.