Three-Site Catalysis of In<sub>1</sub>–MoB<sub>2</sub> to Boost Urea Electrosynthesis
We develop single-atom In on MoB<sub>2</sub> (In<sub>1</sub>-MoB<sub>2</sub>) as an efficient catalyst for urea synthesis from coelectrolysis of NO<sub>3</sub><sup>-</sup> and CO<sub>2</sub>. Mechanistic studies reveal a three-site synergistic catalysis mechanism of In<sub>1</sub>-MoB<sub>2</sub>, where In<sub>1</sub>/B sites enable the formation of *CO/*NH<sub>2</sub> intermediates and their C-N coupling, while the Mo site facilitates H<sub>2</sub>O dissociation to provide the ample protons required for the protonation of C/N intermediates toward urea generation. Moreover, by employing a plasma-electrocatalytic route with integrating plasma-driven air oxidation and electrocatalysis, In<sub>1</sub>-MoB<sub>2</sub> exhibits the exceptional Faradaic efficiency of 80.4% and urea yield rate of 116.5 mmol h<sup>-1</sup> g<sup>-1</sup>, ranking in the top performance level.
Authors
- Jiahang Li
- Chenguang Yin
- Dongwei Ma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6014-567X)
- Xin Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2686-466X)
- Fuzhou Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9028-5382)
- X. K. Xing
Institutions
- Huaibei Normal University (CN)
- Lanzhou Jiaotong University (CN)
- Center for Innovation (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nano Letters
- Published
- 2025-08-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c03072
- Citations
- 9
- Primary Topic
- Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.50