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Electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) to chemicals is a promising route to convert and utilize CO2 under atmospheric conditions. However, the relative poor reaction efficiency seriously hinders the practical applications of this route. In this work, flowerlike In2S3 assembled by nanoflakes was synthesized via ionothermal method and exhibited a high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 86 % with excellent formate formation rate of 478 μmol h−1 cm−2 in ionic liquid (IL) electrolyte. Flowerlike structure can provide large electrochemically active surface area and enhance mass transfer rate. Additionally, density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the origin of the improved performance can be attributed to the large adsorption energy of CO2* and OCHO* intermediate on the (440) facet which is the main exposed crystal facet of flowerlike In2S3.[f1] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The increasing emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) caused by the unrestrained consumption of fossil fuels in recent hundreds of years, has caused global environmental and social problems. Meanwhile, CO2 is a cheap, abundant and renewable C1‐feedstock, which can be converted into alcohols, ethers, acids and other value‐added chemicals. Compared with the thermal reactions, electrochemical reduction of CO2 is more attractive because of its advantages by using the seasonal, geographical and intermittent energy (tide, wind and solar) under mild conditions. In recent years, taking ionic liquids (ILs) as electrolytes in the CO2 electrochemical reduction reaction has been paid much more attention due to the advantages of lowering the overpotential of CO2 electroreduction and improving the Faradaic efficiency. In this paper, we summarized the recent progresses of electrochemical reduction of CO2 in ILs electrolytes, and analyzed the reaction mechanism of CO2 reaction in the electrode‐electrolyte interface region by experimental and simulation methods. Finally, the research which needs to be highlighted in this area was proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to high-performance and cost-effective catalyst materials is one of the crucial preconditions for the industrial application of electrochemical CO 2 reduction (ECR). In this work, a facile and simple strategy is proposed for the construction of a free-standing electrocatalyst via confining a superbase and hydrophobic ionic liquid (IL, [P 66614 ][triz]) into Ni foam pores, denoted as [P 66614 ][triz]@Ni foam. These ILs can modulate the surface of Ni foam and create a microenvironment with high CO 2 concentration around the electrode/electrolyte interface, which successfully suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) of Ni foam. Consequently, the synthesized [P 66614 ][triz]@Ni foam sample can obtain a CO product with 63% Faradaic efficiency from the ECR procedure, while no detectable CO can be found on pristine Ni foam. Owing to the superbase IL, the valency of Ni species retains Ni(I)/Ni(0) during electrolysis. Furthermore, the strikingly high CO 2 capacity by [P 66614 ][Triz] (0.91 mol CO 2 per mole of IL) offers a high CO 2 local concentration in the reaction region. Theoretical calculations indicated that the neutral CO 2 molecule turned to be negatively charged with -0.546 e and changed into a bent geometry, thus rendering CO 2 activation and reduction in a low-energy pathway. This study provides a new method of electrode interface modification for the design of efficient ECR catalysts.

Curcumin is a natural active product that has various pharmacological activities such as anti-inflammatory effects. Here, we report the synthesis and evaluation of 34 monocarbonyl curcumin analogs as novel anti-inflammatory agents. Among the analogs, the symmetrical heterocyclic type displayed the strongest inhibition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in macrophages. Analogs S1-S5 and AS29 reduced tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) production in a dose-dependent manner and also displayed excellent stability and low cytotoxicity in vitro. In addition, analog S1 dose-dependently inhibited LPS-induced extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation. Furthermore, analogs S1 and S4 displayed a significant protective effect on LPS-induced septic death in mouse models, with 40% and 50% survival rates, respectively. These data demonstrate that the heterocyclic monocarbonyl curcumin analogs have potential therapeutic effects in acute inflammatory diseases.