Dynamic Proton Allocation Drives High‐Efficiency Nitrate Electroreduction on High‐Entropy Alloy Aerogels Across Broad Concentration Ranges
Efficiently reducing nitrate across wide-range concentrations in wastewater remains a major challenge for electrochemical nitrate reduction (NO<sub>3</sub>RR) to ammonia (NH<sub>3</sub>), where the dynamic control of active proton is critical. Here we proposed a dynamic proton allocator strategy featuring adaptive control of active proton availability in response to local nitrate levels. Applied to high-entropy alloy aerogels, this approach achieved >90% Faradaic efficiencies (FE) over a wide nitrate concentration range from 0.01∼1.0 M, nearly an order-of-magnitude increase in NH<sub>3</sub> yield rate compared to other catalysts at identical nitrate concentrations. In situ spectroscopic investigations revealed that the high-entropy element distribution modulated molecular structure of interfacial water, enhancing active proton availability for nitrate hydrogenation. Theoretical calculations demonstrated that the unique high-entropy electronic configuration optimized intermediate adsorption, shifted the rate-determining step and lowered the reaction energy, promoting NH<sub>3</sub> formation. These results highlight the pivotal role of proton management across wide-ranging nitrate concentrations in NO<sub>3</sub>RR, demonstrating the potential for integrating sustainable chemical synthesis with environmental restoration.
Authors
- Houhong Song
- Zhichuan Xu
- Weixiao Lin
- Dashuai Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3428-8079)
- Cheng‐Jie Yang
- Chung‐Li Dong
- Yang Hou
- Xiahan Sang
- Lecheng Lei
- Zhongjian Li
- Bin Yang
- Qinghua Zhang
- Nengji Liu
- Huan Zhao
Institutions
- Tamkang University (TW)
- Ministry of Education (NZ)
- Ningbo University of Technology (CN)
- Nanyang Technological University (SG)
- Wuhan University of Technology (CN)
- Zhejiang Energy Research Institute (CN)
- Quzhou University (CN)
- Zhejiang University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Angewandte Chemie International Edition
- Published
- 2026-02-15
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202520035
- Primary Topic
- Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00