Optimized Electron Transfer Drives High-Efficiency Nitrate Electroreduction on Cu−Ru Interfaces

As a promising energy conversion technology, electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (eNO 3 RR) involves eight electron transfer and continuous hydrodeoxygenation steps, resulting in slow reaction kinetics and low Faraday efficiency (FE). Therefore, rational design of catalysts and elucidation of potential reaction mechanisms are crucial. Herein, nitrogen-doped graphene supported CuRu alloy catalyst (CuRu/NGA) was synthesized by a negative pressure annealing process and applied to efficient eNO 3 RR to ammonia. Impressively, CuRu/NGA exhibited a maximum ammonia yield of 10.83 mg h −1 mg cat −1 and a maximum FE value of 96%. VASP theoretical simulation reveals the enhanced charge transfer between RuCu metal atoms, and combined with in-situ infrared experiments, it is pointed out that the synergistic effect of the Ru−Cu efficient catalytic interface accelerates the continuous conversion of reaction intermediates. In addition, for practical application exploration, CuRu/NGA-driven Zn-NO 3 − batteries and membrane electrode assembly (MEA) have shown excellent performance (peak power density of 15.01 mW cm −2 for the battery and stable operation of MEA over 70 h), which highlights the practical application feasibility of preparing catalysts.