Synthesis and modification of carbon materials with transition metal oxides for application in CO2 reduction assays

• Grant number: 25/02556-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: April 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Physical-Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Lucia Helena Mascaro Sales
• Grantee: Eduardo Arizono dos Reis
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Exatas e de Tecnologia (CCET). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 21/12394-0 - Sustainable synthetic methods employing catalysis, benign solvents, safer reagents, and bio-renewable feedstock, AP.TEM

Abstract

The electrochemical conversion of CO2 is a versatile technique that can be used in ambient conditions of temperature and pressure in an aqueous medium (supporting electrolyte), enabling the modulation of synthesis conditions both in targeting the formed product, as for the conditions of pH, electrolytic medium, synergy with the catalyst, among others parameters. Accordingly, conductive carbons are considered active high viability materials so as to have high surface area, low market value and possibility of modifying the surface structure. The present proposal aims to study the modification of active carbon for use as a catalyst for the CO2 reduction reaction. The methodologies developed from the polymeric precursor method include the use of transition metal oxides (Nb, Pd, Mo, Co, Cu and Zr) in electrochemical and photochemical tests in order to correlate the structure of the modified materials according to the selectivity to generate higher value-added products