Epitaxial Fe Coating on Single- and Few-Layer Mo2C MXene as Highly Efficient Catalyst for Ambient Electrochemical Ammonia Synthesis
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Iron-intercalated Mo 2 C MXene (Fe/Mo 2 C) is presented as a robust, earth-abundant electrocatalyst for ambient ammonia synthesis. An in situ HF protocol converts Mo 2 Ga 2 C MAX into few-layer Mo 2 C terminated with =O/–F groups; subsequent wet impregnation followed by mild reduction deposits 7 wt % Fe(0) as an epitaxial coating that lines the internal van der Waals galleries and simultaneously blankets the external basal planes of the Mo 2 C MXene. Aberration-corrected STEM, FFT/inverse-FFT analysis, and STEM-EDX depth profiling verify lamellar Fe domains that connect neighboring Mo 2 C sheets while preserving crystallinity. This hybrid architecture halves the charge-transfer resistance (EIS) and provides a high density of Fe sites that preferentially adsorb N 2 over protons. In neutral 0.1 M Na 2 SO 4, the optimized material achieves a Faradaic efficiency of 28.8% and an NH 3 yield of 19.1 μmol h –1 mg Fe –1 at 0.25 V vs RHE, matching or surpassing noble-metal benchmarks under ambient conditions. Operando ATR-SEIRAS detects N–N and −NH x vibrations consistent with an associative pathway, and 15 N 2 labeling confirms the nitrogen source. The catalyst maintains stable performance for 10 h with no detectable Fe leaching. Thus, the combination of the activity of Fe overlayers with the conductive, mechanically resilient Mo 2 C framework renders a material with remarkable electrocatalytic activity for green-ammonia production.
Source: ACS Applied Energy Materials
Language: English
Subfield: Catalysis
Field: Chemical Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,500
Awards: G1047231290, G120905174, G121809054, G1248814987, G1272927172, G1422035950, G1482201912, G1530851820, G1855990336, G2262748287, G2660406951, G280048558, G3220251042, G3287952880, G3291038552, G3480869486, G3518538256, G357246561, G363809202, G3666917647, G3681454997, G3949784794, G4042783231, G425668148, G4442677895, G4526231891, G531036588, G5421974903, G5482073696, G6080697404, G6873673309, G7084143925, G726759913, G7434936867, G7845153072, G8546142835, G8628280102
OpenAlex ID: W4414246554