A recent class of
porous materials, viz., metal–organic
frameworks (MOFs), finds applications in several areas. In this work,
Cu-based MOFs (Cu–benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid) along with
graphene oxide, viz., Cu-MOF/GO, are synthesized and used further
for reducing CO
2
electrochemically. The reduction was accomplished
in various supporting electrolytes, viz., KHCO
3
/H
2
O, tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB)/dimethylformamide (DMF), KBr/CH
3
OH, CH
3
COOK/CH
3
OH, TBAB/CH
3
OH, and tetrabutylammonium perchlorate (TBAP)/CH
3
OH to
know their effect on product formation. The electrode fabricated with
the synthesized material was used for testing the electroreduction
of CO
2
at various polarization potentials. The electrochemical
reduction of CO
2
is carried out via the polarization technique
within the experimented potential regime vs saturated calomel electrode
(SCE). Ion chromatography was employed for the analysis of the produced
products in the electrolyte, and the results showed that HCOOH was
the main product formed through reduction. The highest concentrations
of HCOOH formed for different electrolytes are 0.1404 mM (−0.1
V), 66.57 mM (−0.6 V), 0.2690 mM (−0.5 V), 0.2390 mM
(−0.5 V), 0.7784 mM (−0.4 V), and 0.3050 mM (−0.45
V) in various supporting electrolyte systems, viz., KHCO
3
/H
2
O, TBAB/DMF, KBr/CH
3
OH, CH
3
COOK/CH
3
OH, TBAB/CH
3
OH, and TBAP/CH
3
OH, respectively.
The developed catalyst accomplished a significant efficiency in the
conversion and reduction of CO
2
. A high faradic efficiency
of 58% was obtained with 0.1 M TBAB/DMF electrolyte, whereas for Cu-MOF
alone, the efficiency was 38%. Thus, the work is carried out using
a cost-effective catalyst for the conversion of CO
2
to
formic acid than using the commercial electrodes. The synergistic
effect of GO sheets at 3 wt % concentration and Cu
+
OH
–
interaction leads to the formation of formic acid
in various electrolytes.