Zhao K, Wang J, Yang Y, Wang X. Efficient Electrocatalytic Ammonia Synthesis via Theoretical Screening of Titanate Nanosheet-Supported Single-Atom Catalysts.
MATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024;
17:2239. [PMID:
38793306 PMCID:
PMC11123175 DOI:
10.3390/ma17102239]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2024] [Revised: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
The electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) for synthesizing ammonia holds promise as an alternative to the traditional high-energy-consuming Haber-Bosch method. Rational and accurate catalyst design is needed to overcome the challenge of activating N2 and to suppress the competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Single-atom catalysts have garnered widespread attention due to their 100% atom utilization efficiency and unique catalytic performance. In this context, we constructed theoretical models of metal single-atom catalysts supported on titanate nanosheets (M-TiNS). Initially, density functional theory (DFT) was employed to screen 12 single-atom catalysts for NRR- and HER-related barriers, leading to the identification of the theoretically optimal NRR catalyst, Ru-TiNS. Subsequently, experimental synthesis of the Ru-TiNS single-atom catalyst was successfully achieved, exhibiting excellent performance in catalyzing NRR, with the highest NH3 yield rate reaching 15.19 μmol mgcat-1 h-1 and a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 15.3%. The combination of experimental results and theoretical calculations demonstrated the efficient catalytic ability of Ru sites, validating the effectiveness of the constructed theoretical screening process and providing a theoretical foundation for the design of efficient NRR catalysts.
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