New catalyst design selectively suppresses competing hydrogen reaction in ammonia synthesis
A research team led by professor Yousung Jung from the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Seoul National University College of Engineering has developed a new catalyst design principle that suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction, which interferes with ammonia production, while maintaining the nitrogen reduction reaction that produces ammonia.
A research team from Seoul National University has created a novel catalyst design that selectively prevents the hydrogen evolution reaction during ammonia synthesis, thereby improving the efficiency of eco-friendly ammonia production. This new approach focuses on altering the reaction environment itself, rather than just controlling the presence of protons as previous methods have done.
By carefully controlling the steric structure of proton donors, the researchers were able to increase the energy barrier of the first step in hydrogen evolution, essentially hindering the reaction and preventing it from occurring. This selective blocking of hydrogen evolution allowed the nitrogen reduction reaction, which produces ammonia, to proceed unhindered.
The study demonstrates that this design principle can significantly boost the Faradaic efficiency of electrochemical nitrogen reduction, potentially reaching up to 100%. The findings could enable localized production of ammonia near renewable energy sources, reducing the need for large-scale chemical plants and contributing to the development of a clean hydrogen economy.
This research also has potential applications in other electrochemical catalytic systems, such as carbon dioxide reduction.
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