Elucidating the structure-dependent selectivity of CuZn towards methane and ethanol in CO2 electroreduction using tailored Cu/ZnO precatalysts

Understanding the catalyst compositional and structural features that control selectivity is of uttermost importance to target desired products in chemical reactions. In this joint experimental-computational work, we leverage tailored Cu/ZnO precatalysts as a material platform to identify the intrinsic features of methane-producing and ethanol-producing CuZn catalysts in the electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR). Specifically, we find that Cu@ZnO nanocrystals, where a central Cu domain is decorated with ZnO domains, and ZnO@Cu nanocrystals, where a central ZnO domain is decorated with Cu domains, evolve into Cu@CuZn core@shell catalysts that are selective for methane (similar to 52%) and ethanol (similar to 39%), respectively. Operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy and various microscopy methods evidence that a higher degree of surface alloying along with a higher concentration of metallic Zn improve the ethanol selectivity. Density functional theory explains that the combination of electronic and tandem effects accounts for such selectivity. These findings mark a step ahead towards understanding structure-property relationships in bimetallic catalysts for the CO2RR and their rational tuning to increase selectivity towards target products, especially alcohols.