Nitrate electroreduction: mechanism insight, in situ characterization, performance evaluation, and challenges
- 10 May 2021
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) in Chemical Society Reviews
- Vol. 50 (12), 6720-6733
- https://doi.org/10.1039/d1cs00116g
Abstract
Excessive nitrate ions in the environment break the natural nitrogen cycle and become a significant threat to human health. So far, many physical, chemical, and biological techniques have been developed for nitrate remediation, but most of them require high post-processing costs and rigorous treatment conditions. In contrast, nitrate electroreduction is promising because it utilizes green electrons as reductants under ambient conditions. The recognition and mastering of the nitrate reaction mechanism is the premise for the design and synthesis of efficient electrocatalysts for the selective reduction of nitrate. In this regard, this review aims to provide an insight into the electrocatalytic mechanism of nitrate reduction, especially combined with in situ electrochemical characterization and theoretical calculations over different kinds of materials. Moreover, the performance evaluation parameters and standard test methods for nitrate electroreduction are summarized to screen efficient materials. Finally, an outlook on the current challenges and promising opportunities in this research area is discussed. This review provides a guide for development of electrocatalysts for selective nitrate reduction with a fascinating performance and accelerates the development of sustainable nitrogen chemistry and engineering.Funding Information
- Natural Science Foundation of Tianjin City (17JCJQJC44700)
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (21871206, 22071173)
This publication has 50 references indexed in Scilit:
- Electrocatalytic Nitrate Reduction for Sustainable Ammonia ProductionJoule, 2021
- Restoring the Nitrogen Cycle by Electrochemical Reduction of Nitrate: Progress and ProspectsSmall Methods, 2020
- Recent advances in non-noble metal electrocatalysts for nitrate reductionChemical Engineering Journal, 2020
- Alternative route for electrochemical ammonia synthesis by reduction of nitrate on copper nanosheetsApplied Materials Today, 2020
- A Spectroscopic Study of Electrochemical Nitrogen and Nitrate Reduction on Rhodium SurfacesAngewandte Chemie, 2020
- Electrochemical nitrogen fixation and utilization: theories, advanced catalyst materials and system designChemical Society Reviews, 2019
- Electrochemical synthesis of nitric acid from air and ammonia through waste utilizationNational Science Review, 2019
- Electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate: Fundamentals to full-scale water treatment applicationsApplied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2018
- Beyond fossil fuel–driven nitrogen transformationsScience, 2018
- The influence of nitrate concentration and acidity on the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate on platinumJournal of Electroanalytical Chemistry, 2004