Fecha de publicación: 20/12/2024 Fuente: Molecules - Revista científica (MDPI) Molecules, Vol. 29, Pages 6025: Efficient Electrocatalytic Nitrogen Reduction to Ammonia with Electrospun Hierarchical Carbon Nanofiber/TiO2@CoS Heterostructures
Molecules doi: 10.3390/molecules29246025
Authors:
Zhenjun Chang
Fuxing Jia
Xingyu Ji
Qian Li
Jingren Cui
Zhengzheng Liao
Xiaoling Sun

As a sustainable alternative technology to the cost- and energy-intensive Haber–Bosch method, electrochemical nitrogen (N2) reduction offers direct conversion of N2 to NH3 under ambient conditions. Direct use of noble metals or non-noble metals as electrocatalytic materials results in unsatisfactory electrocatalytic properties because of their low electrical conductivity and stability. Herein, three-dimensional flexible carbon nanofiber (CNF/TiO2@CoS) nanostructures were prepared on the surface of CNF by using electrospinning, a hydrothermal method, and in situ growth. We investigated the behavior of CNFs/TiO2@CoS as an electrocatalytic material in 0.1 M sodium sulfate. The highest ammonia yield of the material was 4.61 × 10−11 mol s−1 cm−2 at −0.45 V vs. RHE, and the highest Faraday efficiency, as well as superior long-term durability, was 8.3% at −0.45 V vs. RHE. This study demonstrates the potential of firecracker-shaped nanofiber templates for loading varied noble metals or non-noble metals as a novel development of hybrid composites for electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction.