A defect engineered p-block SnS2−x catalyst for efficient electrocatalytic NO reduction to NH3

Abstract

Electrocatalytic NO reduction to NH₃ (NORR) has emerged as an attractive approach for simultaneously realizing NO abatement and ammonia generation. Herein, we demonstrate for the first time that p-block Sn-based materials are promising NORR catalysts. A defect engineering strategy is employed to develop a SnS_2−x catalyst enriched with S-vacancy (V_S) defects. SnS_2−x delivers an exceptional NH₃-faradaic efficiency of 90.3% with an NH₃ yield rate of 78.6 μmol h⁻¹ cm⁻², outperforming most reported d-block NORR catalysts. Theoretical computations unveil that the high NORR performance of SnS_2−x arises from the active Sn-V_S sites which can selectively activate NO and reduce the energy barriers of the NORR pathway.