Tailoring key intermediates and interfacial water at Ag92Ru8 aerogel toward sustainable ammonia synthesis from nitrate

The pursuit of efficient ammonia production through electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO 3 RR) at ambient conditions is a significant demand in green and energy-saving industries. Rational tailoring of the competing yet complementary processes of water splitting and nitrate activation at reducing potentials is pivotal for manipulating the efficiency and selectivity of ammonia synthesis. Herein, Ag 92 Ru 8 aerogel has been synthesized via a one-step reduction strategy, demonstrating remarkable in tuning the reaction intermediates and interfacial water dynamics. Based on Ag 92 Ru 8 aerogels, a high NH 3 Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 97.16 %, and a superior yield rate of 2.49 mmol h −1 mg cat. −1 were achieved at −0.5  V . And the corresponding Zn-NO 3 − battery exhibited potential as a power source for practical application. In-situ surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and density functional theory (DFT) results demonstrate that H* intermediate generated from interfacial water are promoted by Ru species in the hydrogenation process of NO 3 RR, offering valuable insights for the targeted design of efficient catalysts.