Themed collection Sustainable nitrogen activation

The performance of the hydride ion conductor Ca₂NH is negatively affected by the incorporation of secondary anion sites. BaH₂ reacted with N₂ at 650 °C producing barium imide which has good electronic properties up to a certain concentration.

Here, we examine the use of rotating ring disk electrode voltammetry to detect ammonia produced by a nitrogen fixing photo(electro)catalyst. We show that the technique is capable of corroborating bulk measurements but cannot eliminate contamination.

In this paper we set out to provide an overview of different approaches to activation of dinitrogen and their commonalities.

This article briefly reviews catalytic activation of N₂ for NH₃ synthesis under mild conditions. Described are historical background and current demand, recent advances on new catalysts, and next challenges.

A personal perspective summarizing recent progress in studies of electrocatalytic systems capable of mediating the nitrogen reduction reaction.

Electrochemical and catalytic conversion to and from ammonia is strongly enhanced by appropriate choice of hydrogen conducting electrolyte or substrate. Such materials offer important routes for ammonia conversion and synthesis.

We associate potentials with the binding of substrates and inhibitors, H⁺, C₂H₂, CO and MeNC, to nitrogenase MoFe protein by coupling electrochemical control with gas chromatography analysis and in situ infrared spectroscopy.

⁵⁷Fe NRVS and QM/MM are paired to identify key spectral components corresponding to the catalytic cofactors of the three nitrogenases.

Three sustainable plasma-enabled ammonia synthesis routes to zero carbon emissions for chemicals, fertilizers, and biomedical applications coupled with renewable energy.

We fabricated nitrogen-free, mixed-metal electrocatalyst materials for dinitrogen activation using photoelectrodeposition. First studies indicate the light-assisted reduction of dinitrogen and subsequent protonation with these materials.

Our density functional theory calculations reveals a N₂ activation mechanism that explains the different dissociation barriers of N₂ on models of unsupported Ru(0001) terraces, Ru B5 sites, and polar MgO(111)-supported Ru B5 homologues.

An elegant approach to finely tune the structural, physico-chemical, redox and electronic properties of the active site by modulating the interaction between Mo nanoparticles and their support.

The reactivity of Fe-hydrides at the nitrogenase active-site cofactor is revealed by studies of the α-V70I substituted protein.

This study focuses on characterising and optimising novel zeolite-supported Ru catalysts for ammonia decomposition, with a focus on the effects of N-substitution on catalyst structure and activity.

This work explores the electrocatalytic activity of Ga which was identified earlier as one of the “overlooked” metals for catalyzing the electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (ENRR).

Interactions between atomic hydrogen and dinitrogen are facile under ambient conditions. N–NH₃ is the best candidate estimated by DFT corroborating the experimental IR shift. Desorption of NH₃ limits the rates under subcritical conditions.

During milling in N₂ and H₂, Ti metal is converted into TiN. Once formed, TiN acts as a mechanocatalyst for ammonia formation. The evolution of the structure and reactivity of the TiN catalyst with milling time are discussed.

N₂ reduction to ammonia is catalyzed by molybdenum complexes of a bulky porphyrin, and the thermodynamics of the first PCET step are evaluated.

In this work, various types of layered double hydroxides were evaluated as novel catalysts for photo-assisted dinitrogen fixation.

The activity volcano plot depicts trends in activity among various transition metals and explains why copper is more active for the nitrate reduction reaction (NO₃RR) to ammonia. Several strategies are proposed to further improve copper activity.

An Ag₂VO₂PO₄ catalyst synthesized via sonochemical route exhibits a nano rice-grain like morphology and presents electrochemical N₂ activation at −0.2 V with a high NH₃ yield rate of 1.48 mg h⁻¹ mg_cat.⁻¹ and a F.E. of 37.46% in alkaline solution.

Ir, generally considered inactive for nitrogen fixation, can catalyze ammonia formation at much enhanced reaction rates by compositing with LiH.

Barium hydride activates Ni for ammonia synthesis catalysis showing an activity that is comparable to that of the Cs promoted MgO supported Ru catalyst.

We present a simple method for determining the reversible hydrogen electrode potential in a lithium-mediated nitrogen reduction system, and use this to highlight that the greatest source of cathodic potential loss is the requirement for in situ lithium plating.

Low-temperature ammonia synthesis by applying an electric field to a solid heterogeneous catalyst was investigated to realize an on-demand, on-site catalytic process for converting distributed renewable energy into ammonia.

Potential of the anti-perovskite nitrides as reagents for the production of ammonia through chemical looping.

The novel Eley–Rideal–Mars–van-Krevelen mechanism for ammonia synthesis on Fe₃Mo₃N relies on the presence of surface lattice N vacancies and proceeds through the intermediate.