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Updated: Jun 13, 2025

Analytical Techniques for Assaying Nitric Oxide Bioactivity
Published on: June 18, 2012
Electrochemical reduction of nitrate to hydroxylamine on gold electrode
Yangshan Xie1, Michiel De Ras2, Jiwu Zhao3,4
1Centre for Membrane Separations, Adsorption, Catalysis, and Spectroscopy for Sustainable Solutions, Department of Microbial and Molecular Systems, KU Leuven Celestijnenlaan 200F, 3001 Leuven, Belgium. maarten.roeffaers@kuleuven.be.
Abstract:
In this study, we explore the efficacy of gold (Au) as a selective electrocatalyst for the reduction of nitrate to hydroxylamine, a valuable nitrogen-based chemical, while also evaluating the by-product formation of ammonia. We systematically optimized various experimental parameters including nitrate concentration, pH, and applied potential. We found that at an applied potential of -0.7 V vs. RHE in 0.1 M HNO3, Au achieves a 230.1 ± 19 μmol NH2OH h-1 cm-2 yield, with a 34.2 ± 2.8% faradaic efficiency. This study underscores the potential of Au as an efficient and selective electrocatalyst for generating value-added nitrogen products through an electrochemical pathway.
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