Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 18, 2025
Versatile CO2 Transformations into Complex Products: A One-pot Two-step Strategy
Published on: November 9, 2019
Selective electroreduction of carbon dioxide to ethylene over stable iodide-induced asymmetric copper sites within a
Yaguang Peng1, Yinlin Chen2, Zi Wang2
1Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, CAS Laboratory of Colloid and Interface and Thermodynamics, CAS Research/Education Centre for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Centre for Carbon Neutral Chemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
Abstract:
Porous Cu-based metal-organic compounds have attracted increasing attention for CO2 electroreduction due to their well-defined porous structures and abundant metal sites. However, the classical {Cu2}-paddlewheel moieties within these materials often show poor electrochemical stability, leading to structural degradation during CO2 electroreduction. Here, we report a strategy to generate stable {Cu(II)·Cu(I)} active sites by iodide species in a Cu-based metal-organic polyhedron, Cu-TCBB (TCBB=1,3,5-tris(4'-carboxybiphenyl-2-yl)benzene), to not only promote C2H4 production but also clarify the real active sites of {Cu2}-paddlewheel-based materials during CO2 electroreduction. Cu-TCBB exhibits a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 73.1% towards C2H4 at -1.1 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) in 0.1 mol L-1 CsI aqueous solution, outperforming all porous metal-organic compounds to date. The presence of iodide-induced {Cu(II)·Cu(I)} sites was verified through in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction and absorption spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, coupled with modelling, shedding light on the mechanism of CO2 electroreduction over unique {Cu(II)·Cu(I)} sites.
![[DPEPhosbcpCu]PF6: A General and Broadly Applicable Copper-Based Photoredox Catalyst](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcloudfront.jove.com%2FCDNSource%2Fteasers%2F59739.jpg&w=3840&q=50)
Related Concept Videos
01:14Acid Halides to Ketones: Gilman Reagent
As shown below, the mechanism proceeds in two steps. First, one of the alkyl groups of the reagent acts as a nucleophile and attacks the acyl carbon of the acid chloride to form a tetrahedral intermediate. This is followed by the reformation of the carbon–oxygen...
02:17Reduction of Alkenes: Asymmetric Catalytic Hydrogenation
The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...
01:17Thermal Electrocyclic Reactions: Stereochemistry
Selection Rules: Thermal Activation
Conjugated systems containing an even number of π-electron pairs undergo a conrotatory ring closure. For example, thermal electrocyclization of (2E,4E)-2,4-hexadiene, a conjugated diene containing two π-electron pairs, gives trans-3,4-dimethylcyclobutene.
01:26Thermal and Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Overview
02:24Reduction of Alkynes to cis-Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Like alkenes, alkynes can be reduced to alkanes in the presence of transition metal catalysts such as Pt, Pd, or Ni. The reaction involves two sequential syn additions of hydrogen via a cis-alkene intermediate.
01:18Benzene to 1,4-Cyclohexadiene: Birch Reduction Mechanism