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Updated: Aug 6, 2026
10:57
Synthesis and Performance Characterizations of Transition Metal Single Atom Catalyst for Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Published on: April 10, 2018
Interfacial electronic coupling in Cu@Ni/NiO core-shell nanowires enables efficient nitrite-to-ammonia
Yanan Sun1,2, Guangyu Chen1, Jianwei Chen1
1State Key Laboratory of Structural Chemistry, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou, 350002, China. zhanglinjie@fjirsm.ac.cn.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|July 16, 2026
Summary
Triple-phase nanowires facilitate nitrite reduction to ammonia with high efficiency. This breakthrough enables simultaneous ammonia production and energy generation in a novel zinc-nitrite battery.
Area of Science:
- Electrochemistry
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Efficient synthesis of ammonia is crucial for agriculture and industry.
- Developing sustainable methods for ammonia production is a key research area.
- Electrocatalytic reduction of nitrogen compounds offers a promising alternative to traditional methods.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the electrocatalytic performance of Cu@Ni/NiO core-shell nanowires for nitrite reduction.
- To explore the potential of interfacial electronic coupling for enhancing catalytic activity.
- To demonstrate a device for simultaneous ammonia production and energy generation.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of Cu@Ni/NiO core-shell nanowires.
- Electrochemical characterization of the catalyst for nitrite reduction.
- Fabrication and testing of a zinc-nitrite battery.
Main Results:
- Achieved high Faradaic efficiency of 95.85% for ammonia production.
- Obtained a high yield rate of 27.95 mg h-1 cm-2 for ammonia synthesis.
- Demonstrated simultaneous ammonia production and energy output using a Zn-NO2- battery.
Conclusions:
- Interfacial electronic coupling in Cu@Ni/NiO nanowires significantly enhances electrocatalytic nitrite reduction.
- The developed system offers a sustainable and efficient route for ammonia synthesis.
- The integrated device showcases the potential for combined chemical production and energy harvesting.
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