NMR-based quantification of liquid products in CO(2) electroreduction on phosphate-derived nickel catalysts

Recently discovered phosphate-derived Ni catalysts have opened a new pathway towards multicarbon products via CO(2) electroreduction. However, understanding the influence of basic parameters such as electrode potential, pH, and buffer capacity is needed for optimized C(3+) product formation. To this end, rigorous catalyst evaluation and sensitive analytical tools are required to identify potential new products and minimize increasing quantification errors linked to long-chain carbon compounds. Herein, we contribute to enhance testing accuracy by presenting sensitive (1)H NMR spectroscopy protocols for liquid product assessment featuring optimized water suppression and reduced experiment time. When combined with an automated NMR data processing routine, samples containing up to 12 products can be quantified within 15 min with low quantification limits equivalent to Faradaic efficiencies of 0.1%. These developments disclosed performance trends in carbon product formation and the detection of four hitherto unreported compounds: acetate, ethylene glycol, hydroxyacetone, and i-propanol.