The electrochemical reduction of nitrate to ammonia is considered a feasible strategy to address the imbalance of the global nitrogen cycle by eliminating N-containing pollutants in wastewater while producing ammonia in a sustainable way. In this work, we systematically investigate the reduction of nitrate to ammonia on p-block indium (In), noble metal ruthenium (Ru), and their alloys (InRu₃, In₃Ru). We found that pure In and Ru candidates exhibit various performances for nitrate reduction with low limiting potentials for the potential-determining step of −0.31 V and −0.14 V, respectively. However, the incorporation of In into Ru to create alloys leads to excellent activity for the reduction of nitrate to ammonia. Ammonia production on InRu₃ and In₃Ru alloys demonstrates higher catalytic activity and selectivity as the byproducts of NO₂ and NO can be inhibited, while the parasitic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) can also be significantly suppressed. Our work not only proposes efficient electrocatalysts for nitrate reduction but also provides a new strategy for the rational design of alloy catalysts for improved catalytic performance.

中文翻译：

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InxRuy 合金高效电催化将硝酸盐还原为氨的理论研究


将硝酸盐电化学还原为氨被认为是解决全球氮循环不平衡的可行策略，它通过消除废水中含氮的污染物，同时以可持续的方式生产氨。在这项工作中，我们系统地研究了 p 区铟 （In）、贵金属钌 （Ru） 及其合金 （InRu₃、In₃Ru） 上硝酸盐还原为氨的过程。我们发现，纯 In 和 Ru 候选物表现出不同的硝酸盐还原性能，在 −0.31 V 和 −0.14 V 的电位决定步骤中具有低极限电位。然而，将 In 掺入 Ru 中以产生合金，导致将硝酸盐还原为氨的极好活性。InRu₃ 和 In₃Ru 合金上的氨生产表现出更高的催化活性和选择性，因为可以抑制 NO₂ 和 NO 的副产物，同时也可以显着抑制寄生析氢反应 （HER）。我们的工作不仅提出了用于硝酸盐还原的高效电催化剂，还为合理设计合金催化剂以提高催化性能提供了一种新策略。