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Updated: Dec 27, 2025

Synthesis and Performance Characterizations of Transition Metal Single Atom Catalyst for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Published on: April 10, 2018
Single Au Atoms Anchored on Amino-Group-Enriched Graphitic Carbon Nitride for Photocatalytic CO2 Reduction
Yali Yang1, Fang Li1, Jie Chen2
1State Key Laboratory of Electronic Thin Film and Integrated Devices, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610054, P. R. China.
Abstract:
Owing to the maximum atom-utilization efficiency and excellent catalytic properties, Au single-atom catalysts (SACs) have been extensively studied in various catalytic systems. However, the performance of Au SACs in CO2 reduction has seldom been investigated. Herein, Au single atoms on amino-group-modified graphitic carbon nitride (U-ACN) was successfully synthesized through a mild and eco-friendly urea reduction method. U-ACN showed a remarkable performance for CO2 reduction, with CO and CH4 yields 1.97 and 4.15 times higher than those of pure graphitic carbon nitride over 2.5 h visible-light irradiation. The excellent catalytic activity of U-ACN derived from the introduction of Au single atoms, which lowered the energy barrier of CH4 formation, narrowed the band gap, and hindered the recombination of charge carriers. In addition, U-ACN showed improved CO2 affinity owing to the amino groups in the catalysts introduced by urea.
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