Release Time:2020-04-15  Hits:

Indexed by: Journal Papers

Date of Publication: 2020-03-14

Journal: NANOSCALE

Included Journals: SCIE

Volume: 12

Issue: 10

Page Number: 6029-6036

ISSN: 2040-3364

Abstract: Transition metal chalcogenide MoS2 catalysts are highly selective for the electrochemical reduction of dinitrogen (N-2) to ammonia (NH3) in aqueous electrolytes. However, due to the low solubility of N-2 in water, limited N-2 diffusion and mass transport have heavily restricted the yield and the faradaic efficiency (FE). Here, we have demonstrated a highly efficacious assembled gas diffusion cathode with hollow Co-MoS2/N@C nanostructures to significantly improve the electrochemical reduction of N-2 to NH3. Our results revealed that the synthesized Co-MoS2 heterojunctions with abundant graphitic N groups exhibited a superb NH3 yield of 129.93 mu g h(-1) mg(cat)(-1) and a high faradaic efficiency of 11.21% at -0.4 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), as well as excellent selectivity and stability. The strategy described in this study offers new inspiration to design high-performance electrocatalyst assemblies for the sustainable environmental and energy applications.