Amorphous NiB as an electrocatalyst: from KA oil to succinic acid

Succinic acid (SA), a vital C4 building block, is predominantly produced <i>via</i> biological fermentation and chemical processes. Herein, we report an efficient electrocatalytic strategy for succinic acid production from KA oil (cyclohexanol/cyclohexanone mixture) oxidation using amorphous NiB as the catalyst under mild conditions. Modification of NiOOH active sites within the amorphous NiB structure <i>via</i> B doping significantly shifts the catalyst selectivity toward SA as the primary product, contrasting with previous reports where adipic acid (AA) is the dominant product. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations both mapped the reaction pathway and elucidated the origin of this selectivity shift. Our proposed mechanism identifies 1,4-cyclohexanedione as a key intermediate, which undergoes two sequential C-C cleavage events to yield SA.