Turning CO₂ Into Liquid Gold: Korean Scientists Achieve Record-Breaking Carbon Conversion

By Quantum Server Networks | July 2025

Electrochemical CO2 Conversion to Allyl Alcohol

As the global community races toward carbon neutrality, innovative methods for transforming CO₂ into valuable chemicals are redefining the landscape of sustainable energy. A groundbreaking study from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) in South Korea presents a record-breaking approach for converting CO₂ into allyl alcohol, a high-value industrial chemical, with unprecedented efficiency and scalability.

A Revolution in CO₂ Reduction

Electrochemical CO₂ reduction (ECR) has long been touted as a promising pathway for producing fuels and chemicals from carbon emissions. However, challenges such as low selectivity, poor efficiency, and limited scalability have hampered progress—especially for creating multi-carbon compounds like allyl alcohol (C₃H₆O).

The GIST team, led by Prof. Dr. Jaeyoung Lee and colleagues, tackled these challenges by engineering a phosphorus-rich copper catalyst. Their system, integrating copper phosphide (CuP₂) in a membrane-electrode assembly with a nickel–iron (NiFe) oxidation catalyst, achieved a Faraday efficiency of 66.9%—nearly four times higher than previous technologies.

Why Allyl Alcohol Matters

Allyl alcohol is a versatile compound used in producing plastics, adhesives, fragrances, and sterilizers. Unlike conventional CO₂ reduction pathways that stop at simpler molecules like CO (C1) or ethanol (C2), this new method enables direct formation of C₃+ compounds—greatly enhancing commercial viability and energy storage potential.

“This breakthrough opens new doors for scalable electrochemical CO₂ utilization technologies,” said Prof. Lee. “It’s a significant step toward realizing a carbon-neutral economy.”

Mechanism and Industrial Impact

The innovation lies in a novel reaction pathway where carbon-carbon (C–C) bond formation occurs during the transition from formate to formaldehyde. This mechanism not only improves efficiency but also ensures direct production of liquid fuels—easier to store and transport compared to gaseous products.

With record-setting metrics including a partial current density of 735.4 mA cm⁻² and a production rate of 1,643 μmol cm⁻² h⁻¹, the technology demonstrates strong potential for industrial-scale applications in sectors like petrochemicals, steel, and even energy storage systems.

Read the original article on SciTechDaily

Explore Further

Dive into the full research in Nature Catalysis.

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#CO2Reduction #ElectrochemicalConversion #AllylAlcohol #RenewableEnergy #CarbonNeutral #GreenChemistry #PWmat #QuantumInnovation

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