Selective carbon dioxide electroreduction to ethylene and ethanol by core-shell copper/cuprous oxide

Developing an effective catalyst to reduce carbon dioxide (CO₂) to value-added C₂₊ products is a key challenge for CO₂ utilization. Here we report a core-shell copper with native oxide (Cu@Cu₂O) catalyst featuring a thin native oxide layer on the surface grown under ambient conditions. The Cu(I) oxide species on Cu@Cu₂O surface remained relatively stable against reduction under CO₂ electroreduction condition, and the synergism between surface Cu⁺ and Cu⁰ in Cu@Cu₂O contributed to boosting its efficiency and selectivity toward C₂ products. This Cu@Cu₂O catalyst achieved an excellent selectivity (∼50% at -1.0 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode) for C₂ (ethylene and ethanol) production.