KANAZAWA, Japan, June 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Kanazawa University researchers report how an ultra-thin layer of tin disulfide can be used to accelerate the chemical reduction of carbon dioxide. for a carbon neutral society.
        Recycling carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from industrial processes is a necessity in humanity’s urgent quest for a sustainable, carbon-neutral society. For this reason, electrocatalysts that can efficiently convert CO2 into other less harmful chemical products are currently being widely studied. A class of materials known as two-dimensional (2D) metal dichalcogenides are candidates as electrocatalysts for CO conversion, but these materials often also promote competing reactions, reducing their efficiency. Yasufumi Takahashi and colleagues at Kanazawa University’s Nanobiology Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) have identified a two-dimensional metal dichalcogenide that can effectively reduce CO2 to formic acid, not just of natural origin. Moreover, this connection is an intermediate link. product of chemical synthesis.
        Takahashi and colleagues compared the catalytic activity of two-dimensional disulfide (MoS2) and tin disulfide (SnS2). Both are two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides, the latter being of particular interest because pure tin is known to be a catalyst for the production of formic acid. Electrochemical testing of these compounds showed that the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is accelerated using MoS2 instead of CO2 conversion. HER refers to a reaction that produces hydrogen, which is useful when intending to produce hydrogen fuel, but in the case of CO2 reduction, it is an undesirable competing process. On the other hand, SnS2 showed good CO2 reducing activity and inhibited HER. The researchers also took electrochemical measurements of bulk SnS2 powder and found that it was less active in catalytic reduction of CO2.
        To understand where the catalytically active sites are located in SnS2 and why a 2D material performs better than a bulk compound, the scientists used a technique called scanning cell electrochemical microscopy (SECCM). The SECCM is used as a nanopipette, forming a nanoscale meniscus-shaped electrochemical cell for probes that are sensitive to surface reactions on samples. The measurements showed that the entire surface of the SnS2 sheet was catalytically active, not just the “platform” or “edge” elements in the structure. This also explains why 2D SnS2 has higher activity compared to bulk SnS2.
        Calculations provide further insight into the chemical reactions that take place. In particular, the formation of formic acid has been identified as an energetically favorable reaction route when 2D SnS2 is used as a catalyst.
        The findings of Takahashi and colleagues mark an important step towards the use of two-dimensional electrocatalysts in electrochemical CO2 reduction applications. The scientists cite: “These results will provide a better understanding and development of a two-dimensional metal dichalcogenide electrocatalysis strategy for the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide to produce hydrocarbons, alcohols, fatty acids and alkenes without side effects. products.”
        Two-dimensional (2D) sheets (or monolayers) of metal dichalcogenides are MX2 type materials where M is a metal atom, such as molybdenum (Mo) or tin (Sn), and X is a chalcogen atom, such as sulfur (C). The structure can be expressed as a layer of X atoms on top of a layer of M atoms, which in turn is located on a layer of X atoms. Two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides belong to a class of so-called two-dimensional materials (which also includes graphene), which means that they thin. 2D materials often have different physical properties than their bulk (3D) counterparts.
        Two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides have been investigated for their electrocatalytic activity in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), a chemical process that produces hydrogen. But now, Yasufumi Takahashi and colleagues at the University of Kanazawa have found that the two-dimensional metal dichalcogenide SnS2 does not exhibit HER catalytic activity; this is an extremely important property in the strategic context of the trail.
        Yusuke Kawabe, Yoshikazu Ito, Yuta Hori, Suresh Kukunuri, Fumiya Shiokawa, Tomohiko Nishiuchi, Samuel Chon, Kosuke Katagiri, Zeyu Xi, Chikai Lee, Yasuteru Shigeta and Yasufumi Takahashi. Plate 1T/1H-SnS2 for electrochemical transfer of CO2, ACS XX, XXX–XXX (2023).
       Title: Scanning experiments on electrochemical microscopy of cells to study the catalytic activity of SnS2 sheets to reduce CO2 emissions.
        The Nanobiological Institute of Kanazawa University (NanoLSI) was established in 2017 as part of the program of the world’s leading international research center MEXT. The goal of the program is to create a world-class research center. Combining the most important knowledge in biological scanning probe microscopy, NanoLSI establishes “nanoendoscopy technology” for direct imaging, analysis and manipulation of biomolecules to gain insight into the mechanisms that control life phenomena such as disease.
        As a leading general education university on the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan, Kanazawa University has made great contributions to higher education and academic research in Japan since its founding in 1949. The university has three colleges and 17 schools offering disciplines such as medicine, computing, and the humanities.
        The university is located in Kanazawa, a city famous for its history and culture, on the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan. Since the feudal era (1598-1867), Kanazawa has enjoyed an authoritative intellectual prestige. Kanazawa University is divided into two main campuses, Kakuma and Takaramachi, and has about 10,200 students, 600 of whom are international students.
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