Advanced Inorganic Nitride Nanomaterials for Renewable Energy: A Mini Review of Synthesis Methods

Abstract

Inorganic nitride nanomaterials have attracted widespread attention for applications in renewable energy due to novel electrochemical activities and high chemical stabilities. For different renewable energy applications, there are many possibilities and uncertainties about the optimal nitride phases and nanostructures, which further promotes the exploration of controllable preparation of nitride nanomaterials. Moreover, unlike conventional nitrides with bulk or ceramic structures, the synthesis of nitride nanomaterials needs more accurate control to guarantee the target nanostructure along with the phase purity, which make the whole synthesis still a challenge to achieve. In this mini review, we mainly summarize the synthesis methods for inorganic nitride nanomaterials, including chemistry vapor deposition, self-propagation high-temperature synthesis, solid state metathesis reactions, solvothermal synthesis, etc. From the perspective of nanostructure, several novel nitrides, with nanostructures like nanoporous, two-dimensional, defects, ternary structures, and quantum dots, are showing unique properties and getting extensive attentions, recently. Prospects of future research in design and synthesis of functional inorganic nitrides are also discussed.

Single‐Bonded Cubic AsN from High‐Pressure and High‐Temperature Chemical Reactivity of Arsenic and Nitrogen

“…N and As combine with metal and non‐metal elements to form binary and ternary compounds, [1] which are of extreme interest for a variety of energy and technology related applications. [ 2 , 3 ] They are also known to combine with P, the second element in group 15, forming binary compounds: α‐P 3 N 5 , [4] γ‐P 3 N 5 [5] in the case of N and As x P 1− x [6] in the case of As. Nevertheless, excluding the unstable and highly explosive As(N 3 ) 3 [ 7 , 8 , 9 ] and As(N 3 ) 5 [10] molecular azides, no extended covalent compound entirely made of As and N has ever been reported so far.…”

“…Like generally occurring in nitrides synthesis, the high stability of the N≡N triple bond (945 kJ mol −1 ) along the room T isotherm up to at least 100 GPa mostly prevents the direct uncatalyzed chemical reactivity of the N 2 molecule with other systems,[ 12 , 16 ] requiring challenging synthesis conditions for the direct nitridation reaction. [ 3 , 17 , 18 ] As a result, the direct chemistry of As and N has remained essentially unexplored.…”

Single‐Bonded Cubic AsN from High‐Pressure and High‐Temperature Chemical Reactivity of Arsenic and Nitrogen

“…Nitrogen and arsenic are the first and the third element of Group 15 of the periodic table, whose members, named pnictogens, have ns 2 np 3 outer shell electronic orbital configuration. N and As combine with metal and non‐metal elements to form binary and ternary compounds, [1] which are of extreme interest for a variety of energy and technology related applications [2, 3] . They are also known to combine with P, the second element in group 15, forming binary compounds: α‐P 3 N 5 , [4] γ‐P 3 N 5 [5] in the case of N and As x P 1− x [6] in the case of As.…”

“…At ambient conditions As and N 2 do not react spontaneously. Like generally occurring in nitrides synthesis, the high stability of the N≡N triple bond (945 kJ mol −1 ) along the room T isotherm up to at least 100 GPa mostly prevents the direct uncatalyzed chemical reactivity of the N 2 molecule with other systems, [12, 16] requiring challenging synthesis conditions for the direct nitridation reaction [3, 17, 18] . As a result, the direct chemistry of As and N has remained essentially unexplored.…”

The chemistry of Cu3N and Cu3PdN nanocrystals

“…Metal nitrides are a versatile class of materials with increasing interest. [1][2][3] Copper nitride (Cu3N) specifically has garnered attention as an inexpensive, non-toxic material with potential applications in solar cells, 4 high-density optical data storage, 5 and electrocatalysis (oxygen evolution and CO2 reduction). [6][7][8] Cu3N is a semiconductor with a calculated indirect bandgap of 1 eV and an anti-ReO3 cubic crystal structure.…”