Efficient electrocatalytic hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde to value-added chemicals

Recently, organic electrosynthesis has attracted tremendous interest in the fields of electrocatalysis and biomass. Cinnamaldehyde is an abundant natural biomass that can be simply extracted from cinnamon. Its various hydrogenated derivatives have been widely used in perfumes, medicines, and edible flavors. Here, we developed an efficient electrocatalytic system for the hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde and achieved a record total faradaic efficiency of 87.54%, demonstrating fantastic energy utilization efficiency. For the main product, cinnamic alcohol, a partial faradaic efficiency of 41.15% was achieved at a current density of 50 mA cm⁻², superior to prior reports. The conversion rate was estimated as 96.21% for a 7-hour continuous reaction. Furthermore, a preliminary techno-economic analysis (TEA) was carried out and it demonstrated that our electrocatalytic hydrogenation system is potentially profitable for upgrading cinnamaldehyde to high value-added chemicals.