Electrochemical Ammonia Synthesis via Nitrogen Reduction Reaction on a MoS2 Catalyst: Theoretical and Experimental Studies

The discovery of stable and noble-metal-free catalysts toward efficient electrochemical reduction of nitrogen (N-2) to ammonia (NH3) is highly desired and significantly critical for the earth nitrogen cycle. Here, based on the theoretical predictions, MoS2 is first utilized to catalyze the N-2 reduction reaction (NRR) under room temperature and atmospheric pressure. Electrochemical tests reveal that such catalyst achieves a high Faradaic efficiency (1.17%) and NH3 yield (8.08 x 10(-11) mol s(-1) cm(-1)) at -0.5 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode in 0.1 m Na2SO4. Even in acidic conditions, where strong hydrogen evolution reaction occurs, MoS2 is still active for the NRR. This work represents an important addition to the growing family of transition-metal-based catalysts with advanced performance in NRR.