Synergistic effect of Ce_xO_y and Zn ion within the ZIF-zni framework for enhanced electrocatalytic reduction of CO₂

In recent years, human activities have led to an unprecedented rise in atmospheric CO₂ levels, causing significant environmental challenges. To combat this issue, there's growing interest in the conversion of CO₂ into valuable chemicals. This study reports the synthesis and electrocatalytic evaluation of Ce_xO_y/ZIF-zni catalysts for CO₂ reduction. The catalyst exhibited remarkable selectivity to CO, achieving excellent Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 87.7 % at an overpotential of 170 mV. The findings revealed that by adjusting the applied potential during electrolysis, it was possible to tune the catalyst's electronic properties. This resulted in a reduced overpotential and a lower CO onset potential of − 300 mV. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the synergistic interaction between the oxygen of Ce_xO_y and the Zn ion of the ZIF-zni, exposes cerium as the active site for CO₂ activation. This interaction also stabilizes the crucial *COOH intermediate, facilitating the electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction.