Formic Acid and Formate Production through Electrochemical Reduction of CO2 ? An Assessment of Technology and Challenges

Y. ZHAI; A. AGARWAL; LEONEL MATIAS CHIACCHIARELLI; S. GUAN; E. RODE; D. HILL; N. SRIDHAR; G.S. FRANKEL

Boston

Encuentro; 220th ECS Meeting; 2011

At present, formic acid and formate salts are produced from fossil fuels through the CO-methyl formate route. However, they can be produced through the electrochemical reduction of CO2 utilizing either renewable energy or energy harvesting from waste heat,thus paving the way for green electrochemistry [1, 2]. To make this manufacturing route economically viable without utilizing any government subsidy through carbon tax/price, four technical targets must be met: high current efficiencies (>70%), high current densities (>100 mA/cm2), long catalyst life (>4000 hours), and low specific power (<500 kWh/kmol). This paper will survey the status of technology in this area, present the resultsfrom our own research, and identify gaps in knowledge which will require further research and development activities.