Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 11, 2025
07:49
Characterizing Lewis Pairs Using Titration Coupled with In Situ Infrared Spectroscopy
Published on: February 20, 2020
9.3K
Lewis acid-mediated In/In2O3 heterointerfaces with abundant oxygen vacancies boosting CO2 electroreduction into
Dongxing Tan1, Xianfang Yin1, Hengrui Kang1
1Key Laboratory of Catalytic Conversion and Clean Energy in Universities of Shandong Province, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, Shandong, 273165, P. R. China. tandx@qfnu.edu.cn.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|August 15, 2025
Summary
A new Lewis acid doping method stabilizes indium/indium oxide interfaces for efficient carbon dioxide (CO2) electrocatalytic reduction. This enhances formate selectivity, achieving over 90% faradaic efficiency.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Catalysis
Background:
- Electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) is crucial for sustainable chemical production.
- Developing efficient and selective catalysts for CO2 reduction remains a significant challenge.
- Indium-based materials show promise but often suffer from stability issues and limited selectivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a strategy for creating stable In/In2O3 interfaces.
- To enhance the selectivity of formate production during CO2 electrocatalytic reduction.
- To investigate the role of oxygen vacancies in catalyst performance.
Main Methods:
- Employed a Lewis acid doping strategy.
- Fabricated In/In2O3 interfaces.
- Performed electrochemical CO2 reduction experiments.
- Analyzed product selectivity using techniques such as gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.
Main Results:
- Successfully created stable In/In2O3 interfaces and introduced oxygen vacancies.
- Achieved high Faradaic efficiency for formate production, exceeding 90%.
- Demonstrated consistent high selectivity for formate across a wide range of applied potentials.
Conclusions:
- Lewis acid doping is an effective strategy for stabilizing In/In2O3 interfaces.
- The presence of oxygen vacancies and stable interfaces significantly enhances formate selectivity in CO2 electroreduction.
- The optimized catalyst presents a promising solution for efficient formate production from CO2.
Related Concept Videos
02:33Lewis Acids and Bases
44.8K
In 1923, G. N. Lewis proposed a generalized definition of acid-base behavior in which acids and bases are identified by their ability to accept or to donate a pair of electrons and form a coordinate covalent bond.
A coordinate covalent bond (or dative bond) occurs when one of the atoms in the bond provides both bonding electrons. For example, a coordinate covalent bond occurs when a water molecule combines with a hydrogen ion to form a hydronium ion. A coordinate covalent bond also results when...
A coordinate covalent bond (or dative bond) occurs when one of the atoms in the bond provides both bonding electrons. For example, a coordinate covalent bond occurs when a water molecule combines with a hydrogen ion to form a hydronium ion. A coordinate covalent bond also results when...
44.8K
02:54Lewis Structures of Molecular Compounds and Polyatomic Ions
37.2K
To draw Lewis structures for complicated molecules and molecular ions, it is helpful to follow a step-by-step procedure as outlined:
37.2K
01:23Reactivity of Enolate Ions
2.7K
Enolate ions are formed by the acid–base reaction of a carbonyl compound with a base. This leads to deprotonation of the α hydrogen atom, leading to a resonance-stabilized enolate ion where one of the contributing structures is an oxyanion, which imparts additional stability. Therefore, the proton on the α carbon is more acidic in nature than that of other sp3-hybridized C–H bonds but less acidic than those in O–H bonds where the negative charge in the conjugate...
2.7K
02:48Ionic Bonding and Electron Transfer
42.2K
Ions are atoms or molecules bearing an electrical charge. A cation (a positive ion) forms when a neutral atom loses one or more electrons from its valence shell, and an anion (a negative ion) forms when a neutral atom gains one or more electrons in its valence shell. Compounds composed of ions are called ionic compounds (or salts), and their constituent ions are held together by ionic bonds: electrostatic forces of attraction between oppositely charged cations and anions.
42.2K
03:45Formation of Complex Ions
24.0K
A type of Lewis acid-base chemistry involves the formation of a complex ion (or a coordination complex) comprising a central atom, typically a transition metal cation, surrounded by ions or molecules called ligands. These ligands can be neutral molecules like H2O or NH3, or ions such as CN− or OH−. Often, the ligands act as Lewis bases, donating a pair of electrons to the central atom. These types of Lewis acid-base reactions are examples of a broad subdiscipline called coordination...
24.0K
02:19Lewis Structures and Formal Charges
15.6K
Lewis symbols can be used to indicate the formation of covalent bonds, which are shown in Lewis structures—drawings that describe the bonding in molecules and polyatomic ions. The periodic table can be used to predict the number of valence electrons in an atom and the number of bonds that will be formed to reach an octet. Group 18 elements, such as argon and helium, have filled electron configurations and thus rarely participate in chemical bonding. However, atoms from group 17, such as...
15.6K