(4ke) Advancing Electrochemical CO2 capture through Novel Oxygen-Insensitive Heterocyclic Quinone-Based Compounds

Electrochemical CO₂ capture presents a promising strategy for mitigating climate change, with potential integration into renewable energy systems. Redox-active sorbents, particularly quinones, offer a versatile and economically viable alternative to traditional chemical scrubbing methods.^1,2 However, challenges such as oxygen sensitivity and the linear free-energy relationship between redox potential and CO₂ binding affinity hinder progress.³ In this study, we introduce a novel redox-active heterocyclic quinone for electrochemical carbon capture, demonstrating over 90% capacity utilization efficiency over 100 hours of cycling in a flow system containing 13% carbon dioxide and 3.5% oxygen. This promising performance is attributed to the engineered redox-active molecule and optimized electrochemical system. Through a combined experimental and computational approach, we further elucidate the kinetic and thermodynamic mechanisms of the carbon capture process. Our findings provide valuable insights into the potential of new quinone-based compounds to advance carbon capture technologies for real-world applications.

(1) Liu, Y.; Ye, H.-Z.; Diederichsen, K. M.; Van Voorhis, T.; Hatton, T. A. Electrochemically Mediated Carbon Dioxide Separation with Quinone Chemistry in Salt-Concentrated Aqueous Media. Nat Commun 2020, 11, 2278.

(2) Voskian, S.; Hatton, T. A. Faradaic Electro-Swing Reactive Adsorption for CO₂ Capture. Energy Environ Sci 2019, 12, 3530–3547.

(3) Massen-Hane, M.; Diederichsen, K. M.; Hatton, T. A. Engineering Redox-Active Electrochemically Mediated Carbon Dioxide Capture Systems. Nature Chemical Engineering 2024, 1, 35–44.