Electrochemical Reduction of CO 2 on Hollow Cubic Cu 2 O@Au Nanocomposites

Surfactant-free and low Au loading Cu 2 O@Au and Au hollow cubes, based on electrodeposited Cu 2 O cubes as sacrificed templates, were prepared by means of a galvanic replacement reaction (GRR). The electrocatalytical performance of the as-prepared catalysts towards carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) electrochemical reduction was evaluated. The experimental results show that Cu 2 O@Au catalyst can convert CO 2 to carbon monoxide (CO) with a maximum Faradaic efficiency (FE) of ~ 30.1% at the potential of − 1.0 V (vs. RHE) and is about twice the FE of the other catalysts at the same potential. By comparison, such electrocatalytical enhancement is attributed to the metal-oxide interface in Cu 2 O@Au.