Closed-loop upcycling of PET waste into defect-engineered Ni@C electrocatalysts for efficient formate production

An electrocatalyst with rich carbon defects and oxygen vacancies was prepared for the synthesis of FA from PET waste. Specifically, Ni@C-250A realizes stable electrolysis at 1.5 V ( vs. RHE) with a FA production rate of 3.52 mmol cm −2 h −1 .