Galvanic-Cell Deposition Enables the Exposure of Bismuth Grain Boundary for Efficient Electroreduction of Carbon...

Metallic bismuth (Bi) holds great promise in efficient conversion of carbon dioxide (CO₂ ) into formate, yet the complicated synthetic routes and unobtrusive performance hinder the practical application. Herein, a facile galvanic-cell deposition method is proposed for the rapid and one-step synthesis of Bi nanodendrites. Compared to the traditional deposition method, it is found that the special galvanic-cell configuration can promote the exposure of low-angle grain boundaries. X-ray absorption spectroscopy, in situ characterizations and theoretical calculations indicate the electronical structures can be greatly tailored by the grain boundaries, which can facilitate the CO₂ adsorption and intermediate formation. Consequently, the grain boundary-enriched Bi nanodendrites exhibit a high selectivity toward formate with an impressively high production rate of 557.2 µmol h^-1 cm^-2 at -0.94 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode, which outperforms most of the state-of-the-art Bi-based electrocatalysts with longer synthesis time. This work provides a straightforward method for rapidly fabricating active Bi electrocatalysts, and explicitly reveals the critical effect of grain boundary in Bi nanostructures on CO₂ reduction.