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Yes. An electrolyser can be designed to convert carbon dioxide in a mixed flue-gas feed without first isolating pure CO2. It does not necessarily separate CO2 into a purified gas: instead, it aims to make CO2 react at an electrode while nitrogen and other gases largely pass through. Dilution, competing reactions and impurities make that difficult, and the published evidence describes research systems and models—not widespread commercial operation.
How can an electrolyser use flue gas without purifying the CO2 first?
In electrochemical CO2 reduction, electricity drives reactions at electrodes that turn CO2 into chemical products. A direct gas-fed design supplies a mixture containing CO2 to the reaction system rather than first capturing and purifying the CO2 as a separate gas. Under selected operating conditions, the electrode and catalyst favor reactions involving CO2.
This is selective conversion, not necessarily gas separation. Nitrogen and other components are not turned into CO2 products simply because they enter the cell; they may pass through, influence the reaction, or cause problems depending on the gas composition and cell design. A 2020 Chemistry World report described a University of Toronto team led by David Sinton converting CO2 from simulated flue gas into ethylene and ethanol. That report is evidence of a research demonstration using simulated gas, not proof of an industrial plant operating on raw flue gas.
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Why is a mixed flue-gas feed difficult to convert?
CO2 is diluted
Flue gas contains gases such as nitrogen, so CO2 is available at a lower concentration and partial pressure than in a purified feed. That can limit how much CO2 reaches the reactive interface. A 2023 Applied Energy study identifies low CO2 partial pressure as a central challenge in its multicomponent flue-gas system.
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Other reactions compete
Oxygen reduction and hydrogen evolution can compete with CO2 reduction at the electrode. When those reactions take a larger share of the available current, less goes toward the intended carbon-containing products. The balance depends on operating conditions and the materials used.
Impurities can affect different catalysts differently
Industrial flue gas may include oxygen, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. These are not interchangeable contaminants: their effects vary with the catalyst and process, and sulfur-related degradation is one issue researchers have addressed. A result for one catalyst or gas mixture should not be treated as a guarantee for all flue-gas sources.
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What strategies have researchers tested?
Adjusting pressure and temperature
A 2023 Applied Energy study modeled a Cu-based system and examined operating potential, temperature, pressure and competing reactions. It reported 71% CO2-reduction selectivity and a current density of −148 mA/cm2 at −1.17 V versus RHE, with an inlet electrolyte temperature of 273 K and operating pressure of 20 atm. These are results for that study’s modeled system and specified conditions, not general electrolyser specifications.
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Designing for impurity tolerance
A 2024 Nano Energy paper reported 92% CO2-reduction selectivity for its Ni-N-C catalyst under the impurity and dilution conditions it studied. It also discussed high-speed cyclic scouring as a way to alleviate sulfur-related degradation. The selectivity figure belongs to that study’s catalyst and conditions; it is not a universal performance guarantee.
How does bicarbonate-mediated capture differ from direct gas-fed electrolysis?
In a separate approach, a basified liquid electrolyte first captures CO2 from a gas stream, forming bicarbonate. The captured carbon is then electrochemically converted. This combines capture and conversion, but it is not the same architecture as feeding mixed gas directly to a gas-fed CO2-reduction electrode.
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A Small paper by Ye-Bin Zou and colleagues, first published in 2025 and appearing in the 2026 volume, reported a simultaneous capture-and-conversion system using a nickel single-atom catalyst. The study reported at least 120 hours of stable operation, 60% CO2 capture/utilization efficiency, more than 20,000 mL of syngas with an H2/CO ratio of about 3, and 25% lower energy use than the sequential route used as its comparator. Those values describe that specific laboratory system and comparison; they should not be read as benchmarks for direct gas-fed electrolysis.
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| Research route | Where the CO2 goes first | What the cited evidence establishes |
|---|---|---|
| Direct gas-fed conversion | Mixed gas is supplied to the electrochemical system; no separate pure-CO2 stream is required as the feed in the studied concept. | The 2020 report describes conversion from simulated flue gas; the 2023 study analyzes a multicomponent system and reports modeled-system results. |
| Bicarbonate-mediated capture and conversion | A liquid electrolyte captures CO2 as bicarbonate before electrochemical conversion. | The Small study reports laboratory operation and metrics for its capture-and-conversion system and sequential-route comparator. |
What does the electrolyser make, and what happens to the other gases?
The product depends on the cell, catalyst and operating conditions. In the 2020 simulated-flue-gas research reported by Chemistry World, the products were ethylene and ethanol. The 2026-volume Small study used a bicarbonate-mediated route and reported syngas, a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. These are different systems and product pathways.
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In direct conversion, the objective is for CO2 to react selectively; the electrolyser does not have to extract and collect pure CO2 gas first. Other gases may leave in the unconverted gas stream, but their passage and effects depend on the system. The available findings do not establish a single gas-handling outcome for every flue-gas composition.
Is this ready for industrial use?
The cited work establishes promising research results, not widespread commercial deployment. A laboratory or modeled result alone does not show that a system can run economically and reliably on the variable flue gas of an operating facility. Translation would depend on catalyst durability, gas delivery, electrode structure, operating conditions and separation of the desired products, among other system-level factors.
When comparing claims, check whether the feed was directly gas-fed or first captured as bicarbonate; what impurities and dilution were tested; which product and selectivity were measured; and the voltage, pressure, temperature and duration. Energy or cost comparisons also depend on the system boundary and the specific alternative used as a comparator. Percentages from different studies are not directly comparable just because they share the label “selectivity” or “efficiency.”
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