Iron-group electrocatalysts for ambient nitrogen reduction reaction in aqueous media
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Iron-group electrocatalysts for ambient nitrogen reduction reaction in aqueous media Benyuan Ma1,2, Haitao Zhao1, Tingshuai Li1, Qian Liu1, Yongsong Luo1, Chengbo Li1, Siyu Lu3, Abdullah M. Asiri4, Dongwei Ma5 (), and Xuping Sun1 () 1
Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, China College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061, China 3 Green Catalysis Center and College of Chemistry, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China 4 Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science & Center of Excellence for Advanced Materials Research, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia 5 Key Laboratory for Special Functional Materials of Ministry of Education, and School of Materials Science and Engineering, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China 2
© Tsinghua University Press and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020 Received: 29 June 2020 / Revised: 2 August 2020 / Accepted: 10 August 2020
ABSTRACT Electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is considered as an alternative to the industrial Haber-Bosch process for NH3 production due to both low energy consumption and environment friendliness. However, the major problem of electrochemical NRR is the unsatisfied efficiency and selectivity of electrocatalyst. As one group of the cheapest and most abundant transition metals, iron-group (Fe, Co, Ni and Cu) electrocatalysts show promising potential on cost and performance advantages as ideal substitute for traditional noble-metal catalysts. In this minireview, we summarize recent advances of iron-group-based materials (including their oxides, hydroxides, nitrides, sulfides and phosphides, etc.) as non-noble metal electrocatalysts towards ambient N2-to-NH3 conversion in aqueous media. Strategies to boost NRR performances and perspectives for future developments are discussed to provide guidance for the field of NRR studies.
KEYWORDS nitrogen reduction reaction, electrochemical NH3 synthesis, iron-group catalysts, ambient conditions
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Introduction
NH3 is an important chemical material that is widely used in industrial and agricultural production, such as aqueous ammonia, dye, plastic, explosive and fertilizer, etc. [1]. The annual global ammonia production has exceeded 200 million tons, and 80% of which is used to the synthesis of fertilizer, which contributes important part to the rapid economic development and population growth [2]. NH3 is also considered as an attractive hydrogen carrier (17.6 wt.%), due to the advantages of high energy density (4.3 kWh·kg−1), carbon-free nature and easy transport (−33 oC, liquid) [3]. In traditional industry, NH3 is produced from N2 and H2 feeding gases via the Haber-Bosch process, which requires high pressure (150–350 atm), temperature (350–550 oC) and Fe-based catalysts [4]. However, industrial H2 is mainly produced by the high-temperature reactions between H2O and carbon-containing compounds, e.g., C, CO, CH4, CH3OH
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