News Flash
- Ruhr-Universität Bochum researchers have shown that multi-metal catalysts integrated into gas diffusion electrodes (GDEs) can oxidize gaseous ammonia (NH3) to primarily form NO2-, a precursor for fertilizer, while avoiding N2 formation.
“To avoid the liberation of H2 in a reverse Haber-Bosch reaction under release of the energetically more favorable N2, we propose the oxidation of ammonia to value-added nitrite (NO2-), which is usually obtained during the Ostwald process,” the German academics said in “Gas Diffusion Electrodes for Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Gaseous Ammonia: Stepping Over the Nitrogen Energy Canyon.”
They combined ammonia and water to produce nitrite and hydrogen, using a multi-metal catalyst on Ni foam, with Nif_AlCoCrCuFe showing up to 88% Faradaic efficiency for NO2- and near 100% efficiency for H2 production, as detailed in Angewandte Chemie.
Author: Ryan Kennedy
This article was originally published in pv magazine and is republished with permission.
