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Oxygen-deficient WO 3-x spheres for electrochemical N 2 oxidation to nitrate.

Authors :: Zhang Y
Xu T
Shang Y
Zhang G
Yan ZF
Source :: Journal of colloid and interface science [J Colloid Interface Sci] 2023 Nov 15; Vol. 650 (Pt A), pp. 669-675. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Jul 07.
Publication Year :: 2023
Abstract: Nitrate synthesis via the electrochemical nitrogen oxidation reaction (e-NOR) is widely recognized as a potential alternative to the energy-intensive Ostwald process. However, electrocatalysts with strong N <subscript>2</subscript> adsorption and activation abilities remain largely undeveloped due to kinetic hindrances caused by the high bond energy of NN. Here we designed a hollow WO <subscript>3</subscript> sphere with an optimal concentration of oxygen vacancies and studied its e-NOR performance. The optimally synthesized oxygen-deficient WO <subscript>3</subscript> (WO <subscript>3-x</subscript> ) achieved a high nitrate yield of 311.15 µmol h <superscript>-1</superscript> g <subscript>cat.</subscript> <superscript>-1</superscript> and a Faraday efficiency of 2.00 %, which is probably due to the presence of a moderate amount of oxygen vacancies on the WO <subscript>3-x</subscript> surface and the hollow spherical structure, which further improves the accessibility of the inner active surface. Our work could potentially stimulate research into transition metal oxide-based materials for e-NOR applications.<br />Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Guoxin Zhang reports was provided by National Natural Science Foundation of China.<br /> (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)