Electrosynthesis of urea from nitrite and CO2 over oxygen vacancy-rich ZnO porous nanosheets

Urea electrosynthesis under mild conditions shows great potential to conquer the conventional manufacturing industry with huge energy consumption. Here, self-supported oxygen vacancy-rich ZnO (ZnO-V) porous nanosheets are prepared using the electroreduction method and adopted as an efficient catalyst for aqueous urea electrosynthesis by using CO2 and nitrite contaminants as feedstocks. The urea Faradaic efficiency of ZnO-V achieves 23.26% at 0.79 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), which is almost 3 times as high as that of ZnO (8.10%). Liquid chromatography is developed for quantitative analysis of urea. The combined results of online differential electrochemical mass spectrometry (DEMS) and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy unveil a possible coupling pathway of NH2* and COOH* intermediates for urea formation. Our work opens an avenue for rational construction of efficient electrocatalysts for urea electrosynthesis and broadens the scope of products available from nitrite and CO2 reduction.

Automated summary

Urea electrosynthesis under mild conditions has great potential to revolutionize the traditional manufacturing industry with huge energy consumption. This study demonstrates that using self-supported oxygen vacancy-rich ZnO nanosheets as catalysts for urea electrosynthesis with CO2 and nitrite as feedstocks achieves higher efficiency compared to conventional ZnO. Additionally, the research reveals a possible coupling pathway of intermediate NH2* and COOH* for urea formation.