Nickel nanoparticles wrapped in N-doped carbon nanostructures for efficient electrochemical reduction of NO to NH3

Abstract

Production of ammonia (NH₃) from flue gas (i.e., NO) via the electrocatalytic route has been considered a promising approach for rejuvenating the environment over the conventional methods. MOF-derived zero-valent nickel nanoparticles wrapped with nitrogen-doped carbon nanostructures (NiNC) were successfully grown on a carbon fiber (CF). The NiNC@CF catalyst delivered an NH₃ yield rate of 94 μmol h⁻¹ cm⁻² with significantly high faradaic efficiency (87%) at −0.5 V vs. RHE. Coupling with an OER catalyst in a full cell system produces 88 μmol h⁻¹ cm⁻² of NH₃ with long-term stability.