(2hu) Amine-Functionalized Carbon Nanodot Electrocatalysts Converting Carbon Dioxide to Methane

Research Interests: Electrochemistry, Electrochemical CO₂ Reduction, Nanomaterial Synthesis and Characterization

The electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide (CO₂) to methane (CH₄), which can be used not only as fuel but also as a hydrogen carrier, has drawn great attention for use in supporting carbon capture and utilization. The design of active and selective electrocatalysts with exceptional CO₂-to-CH₄ conversion efficiency is highly desirable; however, it remains a challenge. Here a molecular tuning strategy−in situ amine functionalization of nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots (GQDs) for highly efficient CO₂-to-CH₄ conversion is presented. Amine functionalized nitrogen-doped GQDs achieve a CH₄ Faradic efficiency (FE) of 63% and 46%, respectively, at CH₄ partial current densities of 170 and 258 mA cm^−2, approximating to or even outperforming state-of-the-art Cu-based electrocatalysts. These GQDs also convert CO₂ to C₂ products mainly including C₂H₄ and C₂H₅OH with a maximum FE of ≈10%. A systematic analysis reveals that the CH₄ yield varies linearly with amine group content, whereas the C₂ production rate is positively dependent on pyridinic N dopant content. This work provides insight into the rational design of carbon catalysts with CO₂-to-CH₄ conversion efficiency at the industrially relevant level.