Selective Synthesis of Organonitrogen Compounds via Electrochemical C-N Coupling on Atomically Dispersed Catalysts

The C-N coupling reaction demonstrates broad application in the fabrication of a wide range of high value-added organonitrogen molecules including fertilizers (e.g., urea), chemical feedstocks (e.g., amines, amides), and biomolecules (e.g., amino acids). The electrocatalytic C-N coupling pathways from waste resources like CO2, NO3-, or NO2- under mild conditions offer sustainable alternatives to the energy-intensive thermochemical processes. However, the complex multistep reaction routes and competing side reactions lead to significant challenges regarding low yield and poor selectivity toward large-scale practical production of target molecules. Among diverse catalyst systems that have been developed for electrochemical C-N coupling reactions, the atomically dispersed catalysts with well-defined active sites provide an ideal model platform for fundamental mechanism elucidation. More importantly, the intersite synergy between the active sites permits the enhanced reaction efficiency and selectivity toward target products. In this Review, we systematically assess the dominant reaction pathways of electrocatalytic C-N coupling reactions toward various products including urea, amines, amides, amino acids, and oximes. To guide the rational design of atomically dispersed catalysts, we identify four key stages in the overall reaction process and critically discuss the corresponding catalyst design principles, namely, retaining NOx/COx reactants on the catalyst surface, regulating the evolution pathway of N-/C- intermediates, promoting C-N coupling, and facilitating final hydrogenation steps. In addition, the advanced and effective theoretical simulation and characterization technologies are discussed. Finally, a series of remaining challenges and valuable future prospects are presented to advance rational catalyst design toward selective electrocatalytic synthesis of organonitrogen molecules.