DyF3 : An Efficient Electrocatalyst for N2 Fixation to NH3 under Ambient Conditions

Yuanfang Li; Tingshuai Li; Xiaojuan Zhu; Abdulmohsen Ali Alshehri; Khalid Ahmed Alzahrani; Siyu Lu; Xuping Sun

doi:10.1002/asia.201901624

DyF₃ : An Efficient Electrocatalyst for N₂ Fixation to NH₃ under Ambient Conditions

Chem Asian J. 2020 Feb 17;15(4):487-489. doi: 10.1002/asia.201901624. Epub 2020 Jan 22.

Authors

Yuanfang Li¹, Tingshuai Li¹, Xiaojuan Zhu², Abdulmohsen Ali Alshehri³, Khalid Ahmed Alzahrani³, Siyu Lu⁴, Xuping Sun²

Affiliations

¹ School of Materials and Energy, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, Sichuan, China.
² Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610054, Sichuan, China.
³ Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Green Catalysis Center and College of Chemistry, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, China.

PMID: 31885141
DOI: 10.1002/asia.201901624

Abstract

NH₃ synthesis by the Haber-Bosch method is regarded as the dominant method in industry. Such a process is energy-intensive, accompanied by a large amount of CO₂ emission. Electrocatalytic N₂ reduction is a sustainable avenue for NH₃ production at ambient conditions. However, it needs a catalyst to boost the N₂ reduction reaction. Here, we demonstrate that DyF₃ is an efficient electrocatalyst. In 0.1 m Na₂ SO₄ , DyF₃ attains a large NH₃ yield of 10.9 μg h^-1 mg^-1 _cat. at -0.45 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode, with the corresponding Faradaic efficiency of 8.8 %. Furthermore, this catalyst exhibits high electrochemical stability.

Keywords: DyF3 nanoparticles; N2 reduction reaction; ambient conditions; electrocatalysts; neutral electrolyte; nitrogen fixation.