Advances in gas diffusion electrode technology for electrochemical CO2 reduction: Innovations, challenges, and future directions

In response to the growing challenges of global warming and the necessity to reduce carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions, in recent times, CO₂ reduction technology has gained significant attention. Following early H-cell breakthroughs, the integration of Gas Diffusion Electrodes (GDEs) has accelerated the progress of industrially viable CO₂ reduction. However, despite several recent breakthroughs in GDE-based CO₂ reduction, there is a considerable lack of focused reviews on this topic. Addressing this gap, the present review systematically discusses recent progress in GDEs over the past six years within the specific context of electrochemical CO₂ reduction. Focused specifically on GDEs, the review explores different designs and materials used for the fabrication of GDEs, along with a discussion on their pros and cons. It covers the fundamentals of CO₂ reduction, GDE structures, and electrolytic cell designs. Further, the review addresses the challenges and breakthroughs in GDE technology by extending the discussion on self-supported GDEs, innovative approaches, fundamental studies, and some advanced CO₂ reduction technologies such as GDE-based Bioelectrodes and on-site CO₂ capture and conversion. Finally, the findings of the literature have been summarized in the section of a summary and future perspectives, offering valuable insights to accelerate the development of industrially viable CO₂ reduction.