Rational Construction of Heterostructured Cu₃P@TiO₂ Nanoarray for High‐Efficiency Electrochemical Nitrite Reduction to Ammonia

Abstract

Electroreduction of nitrite (NO2−) to valuable ammonia (NH3) offers a sustainable and green approach for NH3 synthesis. Here, a Cu3P@TiO2 heterostructure is rationally constructed as an active catalyst for selective NO2−‐to‐NH3 electroreduction, with rich nanosized Cu3P anchored on a TiO2 nanoribbon array on Ti plate (Cu3P@TiO2/TP). When performed in the 0.1 m NaOH with 0.1 m NaNO2, the Cu3P@TiO2/TP electrode obtains a large NH3 yield of 1583.4 µmol h−1 cm−2 and a high Faradaic efficiency of 97.1%. More importantly, Cu3P@TiO2/TP also delivers remarkable long‐term stability for 50 h electrolysis. Theoretical calculations indicate that intermediate adsorption/conversion processes on Cu3P@TiO2 interfaces are synergistically optimized, substantially facilitating the conversion of NO2−‐to‐NH3.

Low-coordination single Ni atoms on graphitic C3N4 for nitrite electroreduction to ammonia

“…S3b † [43][44][45][46] We evaluate the electrochemical NO 2 RR performance of Ni 1 /C 3 N 4 using a H-type cell containing 0.5 M Na 2 SO 4 + 0.1 M NaNO 2 . 11 The liquid and gas products are detected through colorimetric approaches (Fig. S5 and S6 †) and gas chromatography, respectively.…”

“…[8][9][10] In addition, the fertilizer overuse and industrial wastewater discharge induce the rapid accumulation of NO 2 − contaminants in the environment, which are detrimental to public health and ecological balance. [11][12][13][14][15] Therefore, NO 2 RR represents a promising strategy to achieve simultaneous sustainable NH 3 production and hazardous NO 2 − abatement. However, the NO 2 − -to-NH 3 conversion process involves a complex six-electron reaction pathway which is predominantly hampered by the HER.…”

“…However, the NO 2 − -to-NH 3 conversion process involves a complex six-electron reaction pathway which is predominantly hampered by the HER. 11 To achieve a high NO 2 − -to-NH 3 conversion efficiency, it is greatly desired to design powerful catalysts to promote the NO 2 RR and inhibit the HER. 16 Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have garnered extensive attention in electrocatalysis because of their unique electron/ligand configurations and high atomic utilization.…”

Metal‐Organic Frameworks (MOFs) and Their Derivatives for Electrocatalytic Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Reduction to Value‐added Chemicals: Recent Advances and New Challenges

“…Moreover, in the past 2022, Yan and colleagues achieved the preparation of Cu‐MOF‐CF by growing Cu‐MOF in situ on planar copper foil (CF) (Figure 6l). [77] The catalyst exhibited better performance for CO 2 RR, producing C 2 H 4 at 1.55 V RHE with an FE of 48.6%. The catalyst exhibited better performance for CO 2 RR, producing C 2 H 4 at 1.55 V RHE with an FE of 48.6%.…”

“…l) Schematic illustration of the preparation of Cu‐MOF‐CF and m) the main products of catalyzed by CF and Cu‐MOF‐CF, n‐o) The free‐energy profile and optimized configurations. Reproduced with permission [77] . Copyright 2022, Wiley‐VCH.…”