Cu nanoparticles decorated juncus-derived carbon for efficient electrocatalytic nitrite-to-ammonia conversion

Area of Science:

• Electrochemistry
• Materials Science
• Environmental Chemistry

Background:

• Electrocatalytic nitrite reduction to ammonia (NH3) offers sustainable production and nitrogen contaminant removal.
• Efficient catalysts are crucial but currently lacking for this process.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a highly active electrocatalyst for nitrite reduction to ammonia.
• To investigate the catalytic mechanism using computational methods.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of copper nanoparticles decorated on juncus-derived carbon.
• Electrocatalytic performance testing for nitrite reduction.
• Density functional theory (DFT) calculations for mechanism elucidation.

Main Results:

• The developed catalyst achieved a high Faradaic efficiency of 93.2% for NH3 production.
• A significant NH3 yield of 523.5 μmol h-1 mgcat.-1 was obtained.
• DFT calculations provided insights into the catalytic mechanism.

Conclusions:

• Copper nanoparticles on juncus-derived carbon are effective electrocatalysts for nitrite-to-ammonia conversion.
• The catalyst enables simultaneous sustainable ammonia synthesis and nitrogen remediation.
• The study provides a foundation for designing advanced electrocatalysts for environmental applications.