Electrocatalytic Ammonia Production from Nitrogen with Enhanced Faradaic Efficiency Using Nanostructured Bi₂MoO₆

Abstract

Electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (ENRR) under ambient conditions is anticipated as a viable green substitute to the commercial Haber−Bosch process. However, the ENRR is severely limited by the slow production rate of ammonia, which is highly dependent on the electrocatalysts used. An efficient electrocatalyst for ENRR is crucial for greener ammonia production. Herein, a solvothermal method is demonstrated to synthesize Bi 2 MoO 6 nanostructures using 2-propanol and ethylene glycol as solvents by varying volume ratios. The results show that the solvent has a significant impact on the morphologies and other parameters, including the surface area, charge transfer phenomena, and electrocatalytic properties, which determine the rate of ammonia production. The optimized catalyst has a fantastic faradaic efficiency of 19.0% and an NH 3 yield of 24.9 μg h −1 mg cat.−1 at −0.6 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode that are much higher than those of any independent Bi 2 MoO 6 catalyst that has been previously reported. Moreover, the synthesized catalyst exhibits exceptional durability as confirmed through chronoamperometry and recycling tests.