Tuning Asymmetric S‐Bridged Cu─Co Dual Sites at Atomic‐Level for Efficient Ammonia Electrosynthesis

Abstract Electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO 3 RR) for ammonia production holds immense promise as an environmentally benign strategy. Nevertheless, the process faces inherent limitations by sluggish kinetics of the eight‐electron transfer and multiple competing reactions. Here, an asymmetric S‐bridged Cu, Co dual‐atom (Cu─S─Co) catalyst (CuCo‐SNC) is creatively reported by leveraging the abundant disulfide bond capture and chelation capabilities of wool keratin. Benefiting from the charge regulation effect between the metal sites and S‐bridged atoms, the CuCo‐SNC catalyst exhibits an optimal Faradaic efficiency of 97.8% at −0.3 V (vs RHE) and a remarkable NH 3 yield rate of 0.88 mmol h −1 cm −2 at −0.6 V (vs RHE). The assembled Zn‐NO 3 − battery shows a power density of 7.99 mW cm −2 and exceptional cycling stability. Furthermore, in situ characterization and theoretical analysis reveal that the S‐bridge breaks the electron balance between Cu and Co, effectively modulating the charge state of the Cu─Co site, which boosts electrons transfer from Cu to Co site through the S‐bridge, thereby promoting the efficient conversion of nitrate ions (NO 3 − ) at Co─Cu bimetallic sites. This asymmetric dual atom catalyst provides a novel perspective for the development of advanced electrocatalytic technologies in ammonia synthesis.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Functional Materials
Published
2025-08-05
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202509200
Citations
3
Primary Topic
Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.17

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article

Tuning Asymmetric S‐Bridged Cu─Co Dual Sites at Atomic‐Level for Efficient Ammonia Electrosynthesis

Jingqi Sun, Liang Zhang, Wenxing Chen, Lanmei Lai et al.
3 citations
Advanced Functional Materials
Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction
1.17
article

Tuning Asymmetric S‐Bridged Cu─Co Dual Sites at Atomic‐Level for Efficient Ammonia Electrosynthesis

Jingqi Sun, Liang Zhang, Wenxing Chen, Lanmei Lai, Shiyu Zhen, Wei Wei, Meng Liu, Zhiyi Sun, Wenjun Han, Yujie Wang
article en
3 citations

Abstract

Abstract Electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO 3 RR) for ammonia production holds immense promise as an environmentally benign strategy. Nevertheless, the process faces inherent limitations by sluggish kinetics of the eight‐electron transfer and multiple competing reactions. Here, an asymmetric S‐bridged Cu, Co dual‐atom (Cu─S─Co) catalyst (CuCo‐SNC) is creatively reported by leveraging the abundant disulfide bond capture and chelation capabilities of wool keratin. Benefiting from the charge regulation effect between the metal sites and S‐bridged atoms, the CuCo‐SNC catalyst exhibits an optimal Faradaic efficiency of 97.8% at −0.3 V (vs RHE) and a remarkable NH 3 yield rate of 0.88 mmol h −1 cm −2 at −0.6 V (vs RHE). The assembled Zn‐NO 3 − battery shows a power density of 7.99 mW cm −2 and exceptional cycling stability. Furthermore, in situ characterization and theoretical analysis reveal that the S‐bridge breaks the electron balance between Cu and Co, effectively modulating the charge state of the Cu─Co site, which boosts electrons transfer from Cu to Co site through the S‐bridge, thereby promoting the efficient conversion of nitrate ions (NO 3 − ) at Co─Cu bimetallic sites. This asymmetric dual atom catalyst provides a novel perspective for the development of advanced electrocatalytic technologies in ammonia synthesis.

Advanced Functional MaterialsVol. 36(6)
Beijing Institute of Technology (CN), Shangqiu Normal University (CN), Tsinghua University (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Beijing Institute of Technology Research Fund Program for Young Scholars
Openalex Percentile: Top 22%
Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction
1.17
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