Conversion of nitrogen to ammonia using a Cu/C electrocatalyst in a polymeric electrolyte reactor

Abstract

The electrochemical conversion of N2 to NH3 using a polymeric electrolyte reactor is a promising method to accelerate the green production of hydrogen carriers. On this basis, we report the efficiency of ammonia production by the nitrogen reduction reaction using a Cu/C catalyst in a polymeric electrolyte membrane reactor. The Cu/C catalyst was prepared by the NaBH4 reduction method and characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and conversion experiments performed in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell type reactor. The X-ray diffraction results showed the presence of CuO2 and carbon phases, while the TEM images showed a high agglomeration of copper nanoparticles on carbon. The onset potential of nitrogen reduction was near to the Cu (I) to Cu0 reduction peak. Mass spectroscopy was used to observe the production of N2H2 and NH3 and the consumption of N2. Maximum ammonia production was detected at 0.0 V with a NH3 yield rate of 38.4 µg h−1 cm−2 and a faradaic efficiency of 42.57 %.