催化学报 ›› 2026, Vol. 88: 259-268.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(26)65146-7

• 论文 • 上一篇    下一篇

中性介质中利用原子级精准富羰基金属团簇直接电催化还原硝酸盐合成氨

王淼a,b,1, 沈天宇a,1, 周恒c,1, 杨帅康a, 郝风坤b, 王超辉b, Mohan Kumard, 铁祚庥a,*(), 陈双明c,*(), 范战西b,*(), 金钟a,*()   

  1. a 南京大学化学化工学院, 绿色化学与工程研究院, 天长新材料与能源技术研究中心, 苏州新能源材料与器件绿色智能制造重点实验室, 江苏省先进有机材料重点实验室, 高分子高性能材料与技术创新引智基地, 介观化学教育部重点实验室, 配位化学国家重点实验室, 江苏南京 210023, 中国
    b 香港城市大学香港清洁能源研究院, 国家贵金属材料工程技术研究中心香港分中心, 香港 999077, 中国
    c 中国科学技术大学, 国家同步辐射实验室, 中国科学院纳米科学卓越中心, 安徽合肥 230029, 中国
    d PES理工与管理学院, 卡纳塔克邦希瓦莫加, 印度
  • 收稿日期:2025-11-12 接受日期:2026-02-05 出版日期:2026-09-18 发布日期:2026-09-05
  • 通讯作者: *电子信箱: zxtie@nju.edu.cn (铁祚庥),
    csmp@ustc.edu.cn (陈双明),
    zhanxi.fan@cityu.edu.hk (范战西),
    zhongjin@nju.edu.cn (金钟).
  • 基金资助:
    国家自然科学基金(U25A20628);国家自然科学基金(22561160129);国家自然科学基金(22479074);国家自然科学基金(22475096);装备预研教育部联合基金(8091B02052407);江苏省基础研究计划重点项目(BK20253008);江苏省科技重大专项(BG2024013);江苏省科技成果转化专项资金(BA2023037);江苏省学位与研究生教育教学改革项目(JGKT24_C001);苏州市关键核心技术揭榜挂帅项目(SYG2024122);苏州实验室开放研究基金(SZLAB-1308-2024-TS005);郴州国家可持续发展议程创新示范区省级专项揭榜挂帅项目(2023sfq11);郴州国家可持续发展议程创新示范区省级专项揭榜挂帅项目(2025sfq38);中央高校基本科研业务费专项资金和南京大学国际合作计划(020514380354)

Direct electrosynthesis of ammonia from nitrate reduction using atomically precise carbonyl-rich metal clusters in neutral media

Miao Wanga,b,1, Tianyu Shena,1, Heng Zhouc,1, Shuaikang Yanga, Fengkun Haob, Chaohui Wangb, Mohan Kumard, Zuoxiu Tiea,*(), Shuangming Chenc,*(), Zhanxi Fanb,*(), Zhong Jina,*()   

  1. a State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, MOE Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Chemistry, MOE Key Laboratory of High Performance Polymer Materials and Technology, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Green Energy Catalysis and Intelligent Chemical Engineering, Suzhou Key Laboratory of Green Intelligent Manufacturing of New Energy Materials and Devices, Tianchang New Materials and Energy Technologies Research Center, Institute of Green Chemistry and Engineering, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
    b Department of Chemistry, Hong Kong Branch of National Precious Metals Material Engineering Research Center (NPMM), Hong Kong Institute for Clean Energy, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong 999077, China
    c National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029, Anhui, China
    d Department of Chemistry, PES Institute of Technology and Management, Shivamogga 577204, Karnataka, India
  • Received:2025-11-12 Accepted:2026-02-05 Online:2026-09-18 Published:2026-09-05
  • About author:First author contact: 共同第一作者.
    Contributed equally to this work.
  • Supported by:
    The National Natural Science Foundation of China(U25A20628);The National Natural Science Foundation of China(22561160129);The National Natural Science Foundation of China(22479074);The National Natural Science Foundation of China(22475096);The Equipment Pre-Research and Ministry of Education Joint Fund(8091B02052407);The Fundamental Research Program Key Project of Jiangsu Province(BK20253008);The Science and Technology Major Project of Jiangsu Province(BG2024013);The Scientific and Technological Achievements Transformation Special Fund of Jiangsu Province(BA2023037);The Academic Degree and Postgraduate Education Reforming Project of Jiangsu Province(JGKT24_C001);The Key Core Technology Open Competition Project of Suzhou City(SYG2024122);The Open Research Fund of Suzhou Laboratory(SZLAB-1308-2024-TS005);The Chenzhou National Sustainable Development Agenda Innovation Demonstration Zone Provincial Special Open Competition Project(2023sfq11);The Chenzhou National Sustainable Development Agenda Innovation Demonstration Zone Provincial Special Open Competition Project(2025sfq38);The Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities and Nanjing University International Collaboration Initiative(020514380354)

摘要:

氨(NH3)是化学工业的基石, 在氮肥生产中发挥着至关重要的作用, 并正在成为一种前景广阔的富氢能源载体. 然而, 传统的哈伯-博斯法合成NH3需要在高温高压的极端条件下进行, 其能耗约占全球总能耗的1.5%, 并贡献了全球1.0%-2.0%的二氧化碳排放量. 电化学合成氨为替代哈伯-博斯法提供了一种可持续且环境友好的途径. 硝酸盐作为一种高溶解度、低解离能的氮源, 不仅在全球储量丰富, 还是一种重要的环境污染物, 因此将其转化为氨既具有实际意义, 又有利于环境修复. 利用电驱动的硝酸盐还原合成氨, 为应对环境污染和同步生产高价值氨提供了一种可持续的解决方案. 硝酸盐还原反应过程涉及八个电子和九个质子的转移, 需要大量活性氢(H)的供应. 活性位点处H供应不足常导致副反应发生, 降低法拉第效率和氨产率. 此外, 竞争性的析氢反应进一步复杂化, 因为H*复合生成H2会分流用于产氨的电子. 因此, 设计具有优化活性位点的电催化剂至关重要.
催化剂主要设计理念是需要高效解离水以生成H*, 同时防止H*复合, 从而确保高的氨选择性和产率. 基于此, 具有明确结构的原子级精准金属团簇, 为研究和优化这些过程提供了一个极具前景的平台. 根据d带中心理论, d带中心上移可强化金属位点与吸附物之间的相互作用, 从而提升催化活性. 引入吸电子官能团作为配体可以调控d带中心, 改善吸附和质子耦合电子转移能力. 这些见解凸显了分子工程金属团簇作为高性能硝酸盐还原反应电催化剂的潜力, 有助于建立内在的构效关系. 本研究探索了富羰基金属团簇(CRMC)作为研究活性位点构型和硝酸盐还原反应机理的模型平台. 我们系统研究了一系列CRMC, 包括Co2-CRMC, Co4-CRMC, Ru3-CRMC, Fe2-CRMC, Fe3-CRMC, Mo-CRMC, W-CRMC和Mn2-CRMC, 以阐明它们在硝酸盐还原反应中的结构-性能关系. 其中, Co2-CRMC和Co4-CRMC团簇表现出优异的产氨性能, 在中性水介质中实现了约98.0%的法拉第效率. 理论计算和机理研究表明, 其高催化活性源于对NO3-的优先吸附以及*NO加氢步骤的能垒降低. 而静电势分析进一步表明, 羰基配体增强了金属中心的亲核性, 促进了NO3-反应物的吸附和后续反应. 根据原位微分电化学质谱分析, 检测到NOH, NO, NH3和NH2等反应中间体, 特别是m/z = 15和14处关键NH与N中间体的出现, 表明反应更倾向于通过N端路径进行. 该观测结果与理论模拟高度吻合. 在原位衰减全反射傅里叶变换红外光谱测试中, 观察到1640, 1230和1097 cm−1附近的特征吸收峰, 分别对应NO, NO2和NH2物种. 这些发现进一步证实了硝酸根还原反应过程中NH2特征中间体的存在及其动态演变.
综上, 本文关于原子级精准金属团簇的电催化硝酸根还原方面的研究, 为探索其他基于配位的催化体系(如金属-有机框架、共价有机框架和分子电催化剂)提供了新范式, 也为可持续催化开辟了新途径.

关键词: 富羰基金属团簇, 原子级精准结构, 电化学硝酸盐还原, 电合成氨, 密度泛函理论计算

Abstract:

Atomically precise metal clusters, as an advantageous platform for investigating the active site architectures and catalytic mechanisms, remain largely underexplored. Here, we demonstrate that carbonyl-rich metal clusters (CRMC) serve as exemplary electrocatalytic platforms, enabling highly efficient and selective electroreduction of nitrate to ammonia under neutral aqueous conditions. To establish a comprehensive structure-performance correlation, we systematically investigated an array of diverse carbonyl-rich metal clusters, including Co2-CRMC, Co4-CRMC, Ru3-CRMC, Fe2-CRMC, Fe3-CRMC, Mo-CRMC, W-CRMC and Mn2-CRMC. Among them, Co2-CRMC electrode delivered exceptional performance, with a Faradaic efficiency of 97.2% and an ammonia yield rate of 150.5 mmol h−1 g−1cat., while Co4-CRMC electrode achieved a Faradaic efficiency of 98.7% and a yield rate of 129.2 mmol h−1 g−1cat.. Theoretical calculations and mechanism studies reveal that the high catalytic activity stems from enhanced NO3 adsorption and a reduced energy barrier for the *NO hydrogenation steps. Furthermore, electrostatic potential analyses highlight the critical role of metal-carbonyl ligand interactions in optimizing the electronic environment of metal centers, facilitating stronger NO3 adsorption. This research offers a profound molecular-level understanding for the design of sophisticated metal-cluster catalysts, opening avenues for efficient nitrogen cycling processes and environmental restoration efforts.

Key words: Carbonyl-enriched metal clusters, Atomically precise architectures, Electrochemical nitrate reduction, Ammonia electrosynthesis, Density functional theory calculations