Palladium Nanothorn Assembly Array for Efficient Electroreduction of Nitrogen to Ammonia

Controllable preparation of palladium-based nanomaterials is of great significance for electrochemical ammonia synthesis. Herein, a micelle-assisted replacement strategy was reported for the in situ synthesis of palladium nanothorn assembly array on Ni foam (Pd NTA-NF), in which NF behaves as a conductive substrate and reducing agent. Owing to the nanothorn assembly structure and binder-free property, Pd NTA-NF directly acts as a highly efficient electrode for nitrogen reduction reaction. Therefore, Pd NTA-NF obtains excellent activity (NH3 yield: 5.45 μg h–1 cm–2), faradaic efficiency (20.01%), and stability under neutral conditions. The synthetic approach offers an efficient and valuable approach for growing self-assembled noble metal arrays on NF, which have high potential for electrochemical nitrogen reduction to ammonia and other electrocatalytic fields.