Tandem strategy for electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction

The electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CRR) is a promising technique with which to achieve carbon balance, and strategies for improving CRR performance are of great significance. Inspired by nature, catalysts can be designed with dissimilar active sites to trigger different fundamental reactions, and tandem reactions facilitating CO2 fixation or transformations of primary products to deeply reduced chemicals are also involved in photosynthesis. For the electrochemical CRR, developing efficient tandem strategies is also an emerging approach to improve the catalytic selectivity and output values. Herein, we first introduce the history and principles of tandem strategies used in the electrochemical CRR field. Then, recent advances in metal-based tandem catalysts, tandem cathodic reactions designed for tandem catalysis to improve the electrocatalytic CRR, and tandem devices to enhance CRR performance are systematically summarized. Finally, the challenges and perspectives of tandem strategies as well as the electrochemical CRR are also discussed.