Metal-organic Frameworks and MOF-based Materials for Electrocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Abstract

Numerous CO2 conversion strategies including thermochemical, photoelectrochemical, electrochemical have been adopted extensively in the last decades. However, the electrochemical CO2 reduction (CO2R) to energy-rich chemicals and fuels remains alternative promising technology owing to its ease of operations with an effective green approach. Compared with other energy conversion technologies, the electrochemical reaction conditions are comparatively mild with the ability to operate the reactions in a room temperature and pressure, thereby bringing better feasibility for alleviating anthropogenic atmospheric CO2 emission that threatens global peace. The reaction processes and directions involved can be controlled freely by tuning reductive potential and temperature. In addition, the process of electrochemical reaction is usually proceeded by reactants to gain or lose electron(s) at the surface of the electrode without the need for redox agents, through which the required electricity is derived from some renewable energy sources (solar, wind, geothermal, etc) which do not generate any additional CO2. This makes electrochemical CO2R a green approach with no generation of contaminants. This chapter, therefore, highlighted different metalorganic frameworks (MOFs) and MOF-based materials for electrocatalytic CO2R to energy-rich chemicals. Various strategies for designing MOFs, challenges, and prospects of MOF materials for better improvement of the CO2R were also discussed.