Oxide-Derived Core–Shell Cu@Zn Nanowires for Urea Electrosynthesis from Carbon Dioxide and Nitrate in Water

2022/06/03 by Nannan Meng, Xiaomin Ma, Changhong Wang +7 · 2 citations
Chemical Engineering · Energy · #Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques #Ammonia Synthesis and Nitrogen Reduction #CO2 Reduction Techniques and Catalysts

paper · doi:10.1021/acsnano.2c01177

openalex publication_date 2022/06/03 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31

Abstract

Urea electrosynthesis provides an intriguing strategy to improve upon the conventional urea manufacturing technique, which is associated with high energy requirements and environmental pollution. However, the electrochemical coupling of NO 3 – and CO 2 in H 2 O to prepare urea under ambient conditions is still a major challenge. Herein, self-supported core–shell Cu@Zn nanowires are constructed through an electroreduction method and exhibit superior performance toward urea electrosynthesis via CO 2 and NO 3 – contaminants as feedstocks. Both 1 H NMR spectra and liquid chromatography identify urea production. The optimized urea yield rate and Faradaic efficiency over Cu@Zn can reach 7.29 μmol cm –2 h –1 and 9.28% at −1.02 V vs RHE, respectively. The reaction pathway is revealed based on the intermediates detected through in situ attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and online differential electrochemical mass spectrometry. The combined results of theoretical calculations and experiments prove that the electron transfer from the Zn shell to the Cu core can not only facilitate the formation of *CO and *NH 2 intermediates but also promote the coupling of these intermediates to form C–N bonds, leading to a high faradaic efficiency and yield of the urea product.

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Cited by

• Selective electrochemical synthesis of urea from nitrate and CO2 via relay catalysis on hybrid catalysts
• Carbon Dioxide and Nitrate Electrocatalytic C-N Coupling for Sustainable Production of Urea

Related

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• Dynamic Reconstitution Between Copper Single Atoms and Clusters for Electrocatalytic Urea Synthesis
• Recent Advances in Urea Electrocatalysis: Applications, Materials and Mechanisms †