Research Projects

Ammonia (NH₃) is a crucial chemical and clean fuel used in various sectors, including agriculture, textile, plastic, and pharmaceutical. The Haber-Bosch (HB) process is the current solution, but it requires large amounts of fuel and emits significant greenhouse gases. An eco-friendly approach for ammonia production is proposed through electrochemical nitrate/nitrogen reduction reaction (eNitRR/eNRR), which is superior due to lower N-O bond energy, high solubility in aqueous media, and the removal of nitrate from ground water. Various transition metal-based catalysts have been developed, but their performance is limited due to competitive fast HER processes, low ammonia production rates, and stability issues. Nickel cobalt oxide spinel (NiCo₂O₄) nanowires and CoP nanosheets are suitable for eNitRR due to their higher electrical conductivity. The introduction of phosphorus elements like Co and Rh can selectively produce NH₃ by eNitRR, and the introduction of phosphorus elements like phosphide facilitates nitrate adsorption on the catalyst's surface. The nickel cobalt phosphide nanowire array (NA) on carbon cloth (CC) can be a low-cost, stable, and efficient electrocatalyst for large-scale ammonia production using eNitRR. The introduction of phosphorus environments around the cobalt-based catalyst reduces the activation energy barrier and boosts ammonia formation rate, suppressing competitive H₂, N₂ evolution, and other by-products formation. The phosphorization technique will solve the drawback of the NiCo₂O₄ NA electrocatalyst, lowering the energy barrier for electrochemical nitrate reduction and increasing the catalyst's durability.