Of the effects of nitrogen doping on the electrochemical

The gap

Evidence profile

Sourced from the future work and future-work section and stated research gap of the source papers, classified as general, drawn from work published between 2024 and 2026, spanning 3 journals. Those papers have been cited 196 times in total.

Supporting evidence — 3 representative gaps

• Cu-based catalysts for electrocatalytic nitrate reduction to ammonia: fundamentals and recent advances (2024) · EES Catalysis · cited 121× · doi

  Electrocatalytic ammonia production from nitrate (NO3RR) is promising and highly attractive due to its ambient reaction condition, low energy consumption, and zero CO2 emission. This review summarized the recent progress in elucidating the mechanism of NO3RR, state-of-the-art Cu-based catalysts for NO3RR, corresponding analysis methods for product detection, practical applications and economic analysis conducted to date. In recent years, significant attempts have been made by researchers to design and develop efficient and low-cost catalysts for this reaction. Cu-based catalysts certainly show outstanding kinetics along with selectivity towards ammonia synthesis. Most current research works mainly focus on higher FE and smaller overpotentials, aiming to improve ammonia yield and ammonia selectivity. Among them, nanomaterials with finite structures expose more active sites through a larger specific surface area, which greatly enhances the activity of the material. Also, great achievements have been made in revealing the in-depth mechanisms of NO3RR recently. On one hand, theoretical calculations give insights into the reaction pathways and rationalize a series of experimental observations. Moreover, the activity and selectivity trends of different catalysts can be simulated and summarized, providing guidance for screening and designing efficient catalysts. On the other hand, the in situ characterization methods widespread utilization of enables direct experimental observation during real-time reactions, providing a powerful means for unveiling the reaction intermediates and active species of the electrode surface. Although the great potential for electrochemical ammonia production via nitrate reduction has been proven, it is still far from the real-environment application and has some challenges that need to be explored and solved. First, as a significant concern in the industry, the long-term stability of Cubased catalysts during NO3RR should be considerably improved. Although many reported Cu-based catalysts could reach a high FE of over 90%, the problems of corrosion and dissolution still exist especially in acidic environments, leading to inferior stability. Thus, future research and development efforts should focus on optimizing the stability of copper-based catalysts. This could be achieved through various strategies, such as the use of support materials to prevent the sintering of copper particles, the incorporation of stabilizing agents to inhibit the leaching of copper ions, and the modification of the catalyst preparation method to control the oxidation state of copper.

  generalfuture workevidence 5/5
  Keywords: catalysts ammonia based reaction stability copper selectivity surface electrode production nitrate summarized recent state corresponding
• A novel N-NiFe electrocatalyst for hydrogen production via water splitting (2026) · Vietnam Journal of Science and Technology · doi

  Further investigation of the effects of nitrogen doping on the electrochemical properties of the NiFe alloy. The development of new electrocatalysts with improved efficiency and robustness. The application of the N-NiFe material in industrial settings.

  generalfuture-work sectionevidence 5/5
  Keywords: further investigation effects nitrogen doping electrochemical properties nife
• Isolating Cu-Zn active-sites in Ordered Intermetallics to Enhance Nitrite-to-Ammonia Electroreduction (2024) · Nature Communications · cited 75× · doi

  The poor activity and selectivity of conventional catalysts for ammonia production at low nitrite concentrations. The lack of a high-performance NO2 RR catalyst with completely isolated active-sites. The need for a sustainable and green alternative to traditional ammonia production methods.

  generalstated research gapevidence 5/5
  Keywords: poor activity selectivity conventional catalysts ammonia production low

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