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Published on: December 25, 2015
5P-CoBOx Multisite Synergistic Effects Promote Efficient Nitrate-To-Ammonia in Neutral Media
Jie Liu1, Yuanzhe Gao1, Fanghua Ning1
1Institute for Sustainable Energy, College of Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China.
None:
The nitrate electroreduction reaction (NO3RR) to ammonia (NH3) is an effective method for producing ammonia and treating wastewater. However, its effectiveness is hindered by the multi-step proton-electron transfer mechanism and the difficulty of synergistically modulating intermediate adsorption energies. Herein, we report a wet-chemical reduction approach to create P-doped CoBOx electrocatalysts, which demonstrated exceptional NO3RR activity in neutral media. According to experimental studies, 5P-CoBOx exhibits outstanding activity for NO3RR, featuring an impressive NH3 yield rate (4.18 mg h-1 cm-2) and a high Faraday efficiency (96.87%) at -0.65 V versus RHE, far superior to that of CoBOx and P-Co3O4. The exceptional performance of 5P-CoBOx can be attributed to synergetic catalysis among Co, B, and P sites. The improved electrical structure of several active sites at Co and B sites improves nitrate adsorption, allowing for nitrate reduction to intermediate products. The P site efficiently generates *H through hydrolyzation, thereby promoting the selective conversion of the intermediate to NH3. In addition to demonstrating the effectiveness of synergistic electrocatalysis, this work creates new opportunities for the creation of extremely effective multisite catalysts.
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