Synthesis of 1,2‐Propanediol by Electro‐reduction of Formaldehyde with Oxygen‐enriched Graphene

Abstract The conversion of electrocatalytic small molecules into high value‐added chemicals is a green and sustainable path to reduce energy consumption in traditional industrial production paths. In order to explore the relationship between oxygen function groups in the catalysts and their catalysis behavior, we prepared graphene‐based catalysts with different oxygen densities for formaldehyde reduction reaction by adjusting the content of oxygen‐containing functional groups on the graphene surface. We found that oxygen‐rich graphene (oGO) exhibited the highest activity as well as selectivity for the electroreduction of formaldehyde to 1,2‐propanediol (1,2‐PDO). Compared with graphite sheets and reduced graphene (rGO), the oGO exhibit the highest 1,2‐PDO Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 27.4% with partial current density of 13.7 mA cm −2 at pH 7. In‐situ attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy (ATR‐IR) confirms that the increased content of oxygen‐containing groups on the catalyst surface promotes the adsorption and enrichment of ⋅H 2 CO, which in turn facilitates the coupling reaction to form 1,2‐PDO. This work provides a new vision for the catalyst design in the electrochemical conversion reaction from formaldehyde to 1,2‐PDO.