Nitrogen fixation by Ru single-atom electrocatalytic reduction

Electrochemical reduction of N2andnbsp;to NH3andnbsp;using renewable electricity is a simple and green NH3andnbsp;production method. Most reported catalytic systems, however, suffer from slow reaction kinetics, low N2andnbsp;adsorption, and reduction activity. Designing selective and energy-efficient electrocatalysts is highly desirable to enable both high faradic efficiency and NH3andnbsp;yield rate. Isolating Ru single atoms in N-doped porous carbon significantly promotes N2-to-NH3andnbsp;conversion, reaching an NH3andnbsp;formation rate of more than 3.6andnbsp;mgNH3 handminus;1mgRuandminus;1. The addition of ZrO2andnbsp;can effectively suppress the hydrogen evolution reaction, affording a large NH3andnbsp;faradic efficiency of up to 21% at a low overpotential (0.17 V). This work opens up opportunities for development of single-atom catalysts to facilitate efficient NH3andnbsp;synthesis.