Patent ID: 8313634

Claim:
A method of converting carbon dioxide to provide at least one product selected from the group consisting of glyoxal, isopropanol, ethanol, 2-propanol, acetone, acetaldehyde and mixtures thereof, comprising reducing the carbon dioxide electrochemically in a divided electrochemical cell comprising an anode in one cell compartment and a cathode in another cell compartment, the cathode selected from the group consisting of Au, Ag, Zn, Ga, Hg, In, Cd, Ti, Pt and hydrogenated Pd, the cell compartment including the cathode including one or more substituted or unsubstituted aromatic heterocyclic amines, each compartment containing an aqueous solution of an electrolyte, wherein said at least one product selected from the group consisting of glyoxal, isopropanol, ethanol, 2-propanol, acetone, acetaldehyde and mixtures thereof is generated in the electrolyte by reduction of carbon dioxide and the aromatic heterocyclic amine is selected from the group consisting of lutidines and bipyridines, and mixtures thereof.