Two-Dimensional Metal Coordination Polymer Derived Indium Nanosheet for Efficient Carbon Dioxide Reduction to Formate

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Background:

• Main group indium materials are promising electrocatalysts for carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction to formate.
• Synthesizing two-dimensional (2D) monometallic nonlayered indium presents significant challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a facile synthesis strategy for 2D elemental indium nanosheets.
• To evaluate the electrocatalytic performance of the synthesized indium nanosheets for CO2 reduction.

Main Methods:

• Electrochemical reduction of a 2D indium coordination polymer in a customized flow cell.
• Characterization using in situ and ex situ electrochemical analysis.

Main Results:

• Successfully synthesized elemental indium nanosheets via electrochemical reduction.
• Achieved a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 96.3% for formate production.
• Demonstrated excellent stability with negligible degradation after 140 hours of operation at a high partial current density (>360 mA cm-2).

Conclusions:

• The synthesized indium nanosheets exhibit superior electrocatalytic performance for CO2 to formate conversion.
• Enhanced active site exposure and mass/charge transport at the triple-phase interface contribute to high efficiency.
• Restrained electrolyte flooding stabilizes key intermediates, leading to improved catalytic activity and durability.