Electrochemical Fixation of Nitrogen by Promoting N2 Adsorption and N-N Triple Bond Cleavage on the CoS2/MoS2 Nanocomposite

An electrochemical N-2 reduction reaction (NRR), as an environmentally benign method to produce NH3, is a suitable alternative to substitute the energy-intensive Haber-Bosch technology. Unfortunately, to date, it is obstructed by the lack of efficient electrocatalysts. Here, a CoS2/MoS2 nanocomposite with CoS2 nanoparticles decorated on MoS2 nanosheets is fabricated and adapted as a catalyst for the NRR. As unveiled by experimental and theoretical results, the strong interaction between CoS2 and MoS2 modulates interfacial charge distribution with electrons transferring from CoS2 to MoS2. Consequently, a local electrophilic region is formed near the CoS2 side, which enables effective N-2 absorption. On the other hand, the nucleophilic area formed near the MoS2 side is in favor of breaking stable N N, the potential-determining step (*N-2 ->*N2H) which brings about a much decreased energy barrier than that on pure MoS2. As a result, this catalyst exhibits an excellent NRR performance, NH3 yield and Faradaic efficiency of 54.7 mu g center dot h(-1)center dot mg(-1) and 20.8%, respectively, far better than most MoS2-based catalysts.

Automated summary

In this study, a CoS2/MoS2 nanocomposite was fabricated and used as a catalyst for the N-2 reduction reaction. By modulating the interfacial charge distribution and promoting N-2 absorption, the catalyst exhibited excellent NRR performance.