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Bipolar membrane electrolyzers enable high single-pass CO2 electroreduction to multicarbon products

Author

Listed:
  • Ke Xie

    (University of Toronto)

  • Rui Kai Miao

    (University of Toronto)

  • Adnan Ozden

    (University of Toronto)

  • Shijie Liu

    (University of Toronto)

  • Zhu Chen

    (University of Toronto)

  • Cao-Thang Dinh

    (Queen’s University)

  • Jianan Erick Huang

    (University of Toronto)

  • Qiucheng Xu

    (University of Oregon)

  • Christine M. Gabardo

    (University of Toronto)

  • Geonhui Lee

    (University of Toronto)

  • Jonathan P. Edwards

    (University of Toronto)

  • Colin P. O’Brien

    (University of Toronto)

  • Shannon W. Boettcher

    (University of Oregon)

  • David Sinton

    (University of Toronto)

  • Edward H. Sargent

    (University of Toronto)

Abstract

In alkaline and neutral MEA CO2 electrolyzers, CO2 rapidly converts to (bi)carbonate, imposing a significant energy penalty arising from separating CO2 from the anode gas outlets. Here we report a CO2 electrolyzer uses a bipolar membrane (BPM) to convert (bi)carbonate back to CO2, preventing crossover; and that surpasses the single-pass utilization (SPU) limit (25% for multi-carbon products, C2+) suffered by previous neutral-media electrolyzers. We employ a stationary unbuffered catholyte layer between BPM and cathode to promote C2+ products while ensuring that (bi)carbonate is converted back, in situ, to CO2 near the cathode. We develop a model that enables the design of the catholyte layer, finding that limiting the diffusion path length of reverted CO2 to ~10 μm balances the CO2 diffusion flux with the regeneration rate. We report a single-pass CO2 utilization of 78%, which lowers the energy associated with downstream separation of CO2 by 10× compared with past systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Ke Xie & Rui Kai Miao & Adnan Ozden & Shijie Liu & Zhu Chen & Cao-Thang Dinh & Jianan Erick Huang & Qiucheng Xu & Christine M. Gabardo & Geonhui Lee & Jonathan P. Edwards & Colin P. O’Brien & Shannon , 2022. "Bipolar membrane electrolyzers enable high single-pass CO2 electroreduction to multicarbon products," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-31295-3
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-31295-3
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Zhuo Xing & Lin Hu & Donald S. Ripatti & Xun Hu & Xiaofeng Feng, 2021. "Enhancing carbon dioxide gas-diffusion electrolysis by creating a hydrophobic catalyst microenvironment," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-11, December.
    2. Haeun Shin & Kentaro U. Hansen & Feng Jiao, 2021. "Techno-economic assessment of low-temperature carbon dioxide electrolysis," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 4(10), pages 911-919, October.
    3. Joshua A. Rabinowitz & Matthew W. Kanan, 2020. "The future of low-temperature carbon dioxide electrolysis depends on solving one basic problem," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 11(1), pages 1-3, December.
    4. Fengwang Li & Arnaud Thevenon & Alonso Rosas-Hernández & Ziyun Wang & Yilin Li & Christine M. Gabardo & Adnan Ozden & Cao Thang Dinh & Jun Li & Yuhang Wang & Jonathan P. Edwards & Yi Xu & Christopher , 2020. "Molecular tuning of CO2-to-ethylene conversion," Nature, Nature, vol. 577(7791), pages 509-513, January.
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    Cited by:

    1. Doris Segets & Corina Andronescu & Ulf-Peter Apfel, 2023. "Accelerating CO2 electrochemical conversion towards industrial implementation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-5, December.
    2. Xiaojie She & Lingling Zhai & Yifei Wang & Pei Xiong & Molly Meng-Jung Li & Tai-Sing Wu & Man Chung Wong & Xuyun Guo & Zhihang Xu & Huaming Li & Hui Xu & Ye Zhu & Shik Chi Edman Tsang & Shu Ping Lau, 2024. "Pure-water-fed, electrocatalytic CO2 reduction to ethylene beyond 1,000 h stability at 10 A," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 9(1), pages 81-91, January.
    3. Shashwati C. Cunha & Joaquin Resasco, 2023. "Maximizing single-pass conversion does not result in practical readiness for CO2 reduction electrolyzers," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-6, December.

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