Zn(II) porphyrin-based photocatalytic synthesis of Cu nanoparticles for electrochemical reduction of CO2

Abstract

Copper nanoparticles frequently exhibit unique electrocatalytic activity for the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide. However, the synthesis of Cu nanoparticles in aqueous systems remains rare. Herein, we report the synthesis of copper nanoparticles by using a zinc(II) porphyrin-based photocatalytic method in the presence of polyacrylic acid sodium salt (PAA) in water under visible light irradiation, leading to a series of Cu nanoparticles with relatively small average sizes ranging from 69 to 97 nm. PAA molecules adsorbed on Cu nanoparticles were simply removed by washing with copious amount of water. The purified Cu nanoparticles show some activity toward the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide as evidenced by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) and gas chromatography (GC).