Electrochemical reduction of N2 to ammonia on Co single atom embedded N-doped porous carbon under ambient conditions

Abstract

Energy-efficient ammonia synthesis from facile electrochemical N₂ fixation is desirable in many fields such as fertilizer production and carbon-free energy carriers. However, it remains challenging due to the difficulty of N₂ adsorption and dissociation. Here, Co single atom embedded N-doped porous carbon (CSA/NPC) was reported for electrochemical reduction of N₂ to NH₃, which exhibited high activity and efficiency at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. It can rapidly convert N₂ to NH₃ with an NH₃ production rate of 0.86 μmol cm⁻² h⁻¹ and a faradaic efficiency of 10.5% at −0.2 V vs. (RHE). The Co single atoms, N-doping and porous structure were found to be responsible for its superior performance for ammonia synthesis, where Co single atoms and N-doping can provide active sites for N₂ adsorption and dissociation and porous carbon can expose more active sites and enhance mass transfer.