As the CO2 electrolysis field transitions from fundamental studies to commercially relevant engineering challenges, the cations required to maximize catalysis also tend to overconcentrate, leading to salt deposition and concomitant performance degradation. This Comment analyzes both the underlying causes of salt deposition and potential strategies for resolving this issue.
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Acknowledgements
I acknowledge Y. Tong for her comment at a seminar in Tianjin on 12 November 2024, which denoted that a substantial potential drop would occur within the double layer. This helped inspire this work. I also acknowledge the Pioneer Center for Accelerating P2X Materials Discovery (CAPeX), DNRF grant number P3 and Capturing CO2 for simultaneous chlorine and ethanol production using sea water and sustainable electricity 1115-00007B (CapCO2) for supporting this work.
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Nature Chemical Engineering thanks Maximilian Fleischer, Drew Higgins and Xiaonan Shan for their contribution to the peer review of this work.
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Seger, B. Causes of and mitigation approaches for salt deposition in CO2 electrolysis. Nat Chem Eng (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-025-00293-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44286-025-00293-9
