Isolated Electron‐Rich Ruthenium Atoms in Intermetallic Compounds for Boosting Electrochemical Nitric Oxide Reduction to Ammonia

Abstract

The direct electrochemical nitric oxide reduction reaction (NORR) is an attractive technique for converting NO into NH3 with low power consumption under ambient conditions. Optimizing the electronic structure of the active sites can greatly improve the performance of electrocatalysts. Herein, we prepare body‐centered cubic RuGa intermetallic compounds (i.e., bcc RuGa IMCs) via a substrate‐anchored thermal annealing method. The electrocatalyst exhibits a remarkable NH4+ yield rate of 320.6 μmol h−1 mg−1Ru with the corresponding Faradaic efficiency of 72.3 % at very low potential of −0.2 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) in neutral media. Theoretical calculations reveal that the electron‐rich Ru atoms in bcc RuGa IMCs facilitate the adsorption and activation of *HNO intermediate. Hence, the energy barrier of the potential‐determining step in NORR could be greatly reduced.

Multicomponent catalyst design for CO2/N2/NOxelectroreduction

“…In addition, electroreduction of other NO x molecules, such as NO ( x = 1) and NO 2 − ( x = 2), to NH 3 has been also reported but will not be discussed in the current review. 25–28…”

Anomalous dominated (100) index facet endows ruthenium nanoparticles with accelerated alkaline hydrogen evolution

“…2a, the C 1s + Ru 3d XPS of Ru(100)/NPC can be fitted into C-C species (∼284.7 eV), C-P (∼285.5 eV), C-N (∼286.6 eV), Ru 0 (∼280.6 eV), and Ru x+ (∼281.5 eV). 27 The N 1s XPS (Fig. 2b) of Ru(100)/ NPC is deconvoluted into four peaks, including pyridinic N (∼397.7 eV), pyrrolic N (∼399.0 eV), graphitic N (∼400.5 eV), and oxidized N (∼402.2 eV).…”