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Garg A, Saha A, Dutta S, Pati SK, Eswaramoorthy M, Rao C. High Ammonia Yield Rate from Dilute Nitrate Solutions Using a Cu(100)-Rich Foil: A Step Closer to Large-Scale Production. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2024; 16:36392-36400. [PMID: 38963227 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c05818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
The electrochemical reduction of nitrate (NO3-) ions to ammonia (NH3) provides an alternative method to eliminate harmful NO3- pollutants in water as well as to produce highly valuable NH3 chemicals. The NH3 yield rate however is still limited to the μmol h-1 cm-2 range when dealing with dilute NO3- concentrations found in waste streams. Copper (Cu) has attracted much attention because of its unique ability to effectively convert NO3- to NH3. We have reported a simple and scalable electrochemical method to produce a Cu foil having its surface covered with a porous Cu nanostructure enriched with (100) facets, which efficiently catalyzes NO3- to NH3. The Cu(100)-rich electrocatalyst showed a very high NH3 production rate of 1.1 mmol h-1 cm-2 in NO3- concentration as low as 14 mM NO3-, which is 4-5 times higher than the best-reported values. Increasing the NO3- concentration (140 mM) resulted in an NH3 production yield rate of 3.34 mmol h-1 cm-2. The durability test conducted for this catalyst foil in a flow cell system showed greater than 100 h stability with a Faradaic efficiency greater than 98%, demonstrating its potential to be used on an industrially relevant scale. Further, density functional theory (DFT) calculations have been performed to understand the better catalytic activity of Cu(100) compared to Cu(111) facets toward NO3-RR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhishek Garg
- Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit, School of Advanced Materials (SAMat), Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
| | - Arunava Saha
- Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit, School of Advanced Materials (SAMat), Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
| | - Supriti Dutta
- Theoretical Sciences Unit, School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore 560064, India
| | - Swapan K Pati
- Theoretical Sciences Unit, School of Advanced Materials, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore 560064, India
| | - Muthusamy Eswaramoorthy
- Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit, School of Advanced Materials (SAMat), Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
- International Centre for Materials Science, JNCASR, Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
| | - Cnr Rao
- Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit, School of Advanced Materials (SAMat), Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
- International Centre for Materials Science, JNCASR, Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
- New Chemistry Unit, Sheikh Saqr Laboratory, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Jakkur P.O., Bangalore 560064, India
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2
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Xu Y, Cheng C, Zhu J, Zhang B, Wang Y, Yu Y. Sulphur-Boosted Active Hydrogen on Copper for Enhanced Electrocatalytic Nitrate-to-Ammonia Selectivity. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2024; 63:e202400289. [PMID: 38372474 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202400289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2024] [Revised: 02/18/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Electrocatalytic nitrate reduction to ammonia is a promising approach in term of pollutant appreciation. Cu-based catalysts performs a leading-edge advantage for nitrate reduction due to its favorable adsorption with *NO3. However, the formation of active hydrogen (*H) on Cu surface is difficult and insufficient, leading to the significant generation of by-product NO2 -. Herein, sulphur doped Cu (Cu-S) is prepared via an electrochemical conversion strategy and used for nitrate electroreduction. The high Faradaic efficiency (FE) of ammonia (~98.3 %) and an extremely low FE of nitrite (~1.4 %) are achieved on Cu-S, obviously superior to its counterpart of Cu (FENH3: 70.4 %, FENO2 -: 18.8 %). Electrochemical in situ characterizations and theoretical calculations indicate that a small amount of S doping on Cu surface can promote the kinetics of H2O dissociation to active hydrogen. The optimized hydrogen affinity validly decreases the hydrogenation kinetic energy barrier of *NO2, leading to an enhanced NH3 selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Xu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Chuanqi Cheng
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Molecular Plus, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Jiewei Zhu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Bin Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Molecular Plus, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Yuting Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Molecular Plus, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin, 300192, China
| | - Yifu Yu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- Department of Chemistry, Institute of Molecular Plus, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin, 300192, China
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3
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Wang Y, Hao F, Sun M, Liu MT, Zhou J, Xiong Y, Ye C, Wang X, Liu F, Wang J, Lu P, Ma Y, Yin J, Chen HC, Zhang Q, Gu L, Chen HM, Huang B, Fan Z. Crystal Phase Engineering of Ultrathin Alloy Nanostructures for Highly Efficient Electroreduction of Nitrate to Ammonia. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024; 36:e2313548. [PMID: 38279631 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202313548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
Electrocatalytic nitrate reduction reaction (NO3RR) toward ammonia synthesis is recognized as a sustainable strategy to balance the global nitrogen cycle. However, it still remains a great challenge to achieve highly efficient ammonia production due to the complex proton-coupled electron transfer process in NO3RR. Here, the controlled synthesis of RuMo alloy nanoflowers (NFs) with unconventional face-centered cubic (fcc) phase and hexagonal close-packed/fcc heterophase for highly efficient NO3RR is reported. Significantly, fcc RuMo NFs demonstrate high Faradaic efficiency of 95.2% and a large yield rate of 32.7 mg h-1 mgcat -1 toward ammonia production at 0 and -0.1 V (vs reversible hydrogen electrode), respectively. In situ characterizations and theoretical calculations have unraveled that fcc RuMo NFs possess the highest d-band center with superior electroactivity, which originates from the strong Ru─Mo interactions and the high intrinsic activity of the unconventional fcc phase. The optimal electronic structures of fcc RuMo NFs supply strong adsorption of key intermediates with suppression of the competitive hydrogen evolution, which further determines the remarkable NO3RR performance. The successful demonstration of high-performance zinc-nitrate batteries with fcc RuMo NFs suggests their substantial application potential in electrochemical energy supply systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunhao Wang
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Fengkun Hao
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Mingzi Sun
- Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Meng-Ting Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Center for Emerging Materials and Advanced Devices, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan
| | - Jingwen Zhou
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
- Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center (NPMM), City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Yuecheng Xiong
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
- Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center (NPMM), City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Chenliang Ye
- Department of Power Engineering, North China Electric Power University, Baoding, Hebei, 071003, China
| | - Xixi Wang
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Fu Liu
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Juan Wang
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Pengyi Lu
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
- Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center (NPMM), City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Yangbo Ma
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Jinwen Yin
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Hsiao-Chien Chen
- Center for Reliability Science and Technologies, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, 33302, Taiwan
| | - Qinghua Zhang
- Institute of Physics, Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Lin Gu
- Beijing National Center for Electron Microscopy and Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Hao Ming Chen
- Department of Chemistry and Center for Emerging Materials and Advanced Devices, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Nanomedicine and Medical Engineering, College of Biomedical Engineering, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, 11031, Taiwan
| | - Bolong Huang
- Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong, 999077, China
| | - Zhanxi Fan
- Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
- Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center (NPMM), City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China
- City University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, 518057, China
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Zheng M, Zhang J, Wang P, Jin H, Zheng Y, Qiao SZ. Recent Advances in Electrocatalytic Hydrogenation Reactions on Copper-Based Catalysts. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2024; 36:e2307913. [PMID: 37756435 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202307913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
Hydrogenation reactions play a critical role in the synthesis of value-added products within the chemical industry. Electrocatalytic hydrogenation (ECH) using water as the hydrogen source has emerged as an alternative to conventional thermocatalytic processes for sustainable and decentralized chemical synthesis under mild conditions. Among the various ECH catalysts, copper-based (Cu-based) nanomaterials are promising candidates due to their earth-abundance, unique electronic structure, versatility, and high activity/selectivity. Herein, recent advances in the application of Cu-based catalysts in ECH reactions for the upgrading of valuable chemicals are systematically analyzed. The unique properties of Cu-based catalysts in ECH are initially introduced, followed by design strategies to enhance their activity and selectivity. Then, typical ECH reactions on Cu-based catalysts are presented in detail, including carbon dioxide reduction for multicarbon generation, alkyne-to-alkene conversion, selective aldehyde conversion, ammonia production from nitrogen-containing substances, and amine production from organic nitrogen compounds. In these catalysts, the role of catalyst composition and nanostructures toward different products is focused. The co-hydrogenation of two substrates (e.g., CO2 and NOx n, SO3 2-, etc.) via C─N, C─S, and C─C cross-coupling reactions are also highlighted. Finally, the critical issues and future perspectives of Cu-catalyzed ECH are proposed to accelerate the rational development of next-generation catalysts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Zheng
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Junyu Zhang
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Pengtang Wang
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Huanyu Jin
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Yao Zheng
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Shi-Zhang Qiao
- School of Chemical Engineering, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
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Liu K, Li H, Xie M, Wang P, Jin Z, Liu Y, Zhou M, Li P, Yu G. Thermally Enhanced Relay Electrocatalysis of Nitrate-to-Ammonia Reduction over Single-Atom-Alloy Oxides. J Am Chem Soc 2024; 146:7779-7790. [PMID: 38466142 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c00429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/12/2024]
Abstract
The electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO3RR) holds promise for converting nitrogenous pollutants to valuable ammonia products. However, conventional electrocatalysis faces challenges in effectively driving the complex eight-electron and nine-proton transfer process of the NO3RR while also competing with the hydrogen evolution reaction. In this study, we present the thermally enhanced electrocatalysis of nitrate-to-ammonia conversion over nickel-modified copper oxide single-atom alloy oxide nanowires. The catalyst demonstrates improved ammonia production performance with a Faradaic efficiency of approximately 80% and a yield rate of 9.7 mg h-1 cm-2 at +0.1 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode at elevated cell temperatures. In addition, this thermally enhanced electrocatalysis system displays impressive stability, interference resistance, and favorable energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions for the simulated industrial wastewater treatment. Complementary in situ analyses confirm that the significantly superior relay of active hydrogen species formed at Ni sites facilitates the thermal-field-coupled electrocatalysis of Cu surface-adsorbed *NOx hydrogenation. Theoretical calculations further support the thermodynamic and kinetic feasibility of the relay catalysis mechanism for the NO3RR over the Ni1Cu model catalyst. This study introduces a conceptual thermal-electrochemistry approach for the synergistic regulation of complex catalytic processes, highlighting the potential of multifield-coupled catalysis to advance sustainable-energy-powered chemical synthesis technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kui Liu
- College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Hongmei Li
- College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Minghao Xie
- Materials Science and Engineering Program and Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, the University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, United States
| | - Pengfei Wang
- Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China
| | - Zhaoyu Jin
- Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China
| | - Yuanting Liu
- College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Min Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Electroanalytical Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, Jilin, China
| | - Panpan Li
- College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
| | - Guihua Yu
- Materials Science and Engineering Program and Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, the University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712, United States
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6
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Peng O, Hu Q, Zhou X, Zhang R, Du Y, Li M, Ma L, Xi S, Fu W, Xu ZX, Cheng C, Chen Z, Loh KP. Swinging Hydrogen Evolution to Nitrate Reduction Activity in Molybdenum Carbide by Ruthenium Doping. ACS Catal 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.2c04584] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ouwen Peng
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Qikun Hu
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
| | - Xin Zhou
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
| | - Rongrong Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
- Joint School of NUS and TJU, International Campus of Tianjin University, Fuzhou 350207, China
| | - Yonghua Du
- National Synchrotron Light Source II, Brookhaven National Lab, Upton, New York 11973, United States
| | - Minzhang Li
- Department of Chemistry, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Lu Ma
- National Synchrotron Light Source II, Brookhaven National Lab, Upton, New York 11973, United States
| | - Shibo Xi
- Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 1 Pesek Road, Jurong Island, Singapore 627833, Singapore
| | - Wei Fu
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
| | - Zong-Xiang Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Chun Cheng
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Zhongxin Chen
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
| | - Kian Ping Loh
- Department of Chemistry, National University of Singapore, 3 Science Drive 3, Singapore 117543, Singapore
- Joint School of NUS and TJU, International Campus of Tianjin University, Fuzhou 350207, China
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Crawford J, Yin H, Du A, O'Mullane AP. Nitrate‐to‐Ammonia Conversion at an InSn‐Enriched Liquid‐Metal Electrode. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202201604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Crawford
- School of Chemistry and Physics Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
- Centre for Materials Science Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
| | - Hanqing Yin
- School of Chemistry and Physics Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
- Centre for Materials Science Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
| | - Aijun Du
- School of Chemistry and Physics Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
- Centre for Materials Science Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
| | - Anthony P. O'Mullane
- School of Chemistry and Physics Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
- Centre for Materials Science Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane QLD 4001 Australia
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