Earth-abundant elements a sustainable solution for electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate

被引:133
作者
Fajardo, Ana S. [1 ,2 ]
Westerhoff, Paul [1 ]
Sanchez-Sanchez, Carlos M. [2 ]
Garcia-Segura, Sergi [1 ]
机构
[1] Arizona State Univ, Sch Sustainable Engn & Built Environm, Nanosyst Engn Res Ctr Nanotechnol Enabled Water T, Tempe, AZ 85287 USA
[2] Sorbonne Univ, CNRS, Lab Interfaces & Syst Electrochim LISE, 4 Pl Jussieu, F-75005 Paris, France
基金
欧盟地平线“2020”; 美国国家科学基金会;
关键词
Water treatment; Advanced reduction processes; Electrochemical technologies; Cathodic materials; Selectivity towards nitrogen; PLATINUM-GROUP METALS; BORON-DOPED DIAMOND; ELECTROCHEMICAL REDUCTION; CATALYTIC-REDUCTION; WATER-TREATMENT; HUMAN HEALTH; ELECTRODES; ELECTROREDUCTION; CATHODE; IONS;
D O I
10.1016/j.apcatb.2020.119465
中图分类号
O64 [物理化学(理论化学)、化学物理学];
学科分类号
070304 ; 081704 ;
摘要
Platinum group elements (PGEs) are widely-used electrocatalysts. However, the low abundance of PGEs in the earth's crust and high environmental impacts to be acquired result in high costs, limiting their use in drinking water treatment. Identifying sustainable alternatives to PGEs is a major barrier in applying electrocatalysis for nitrate reduction. By moving up the periodic table, this study provides a framework for selecting promising earth-abundant elements that can electrocatalytically degrade nitrate in water to innocuous by-products. We benchmarked platinum (Pt) against less-endangered elements for electrodes by quantifying nitrate reduction rates, by-product selectivity, and energy efficiencies. Carbon (as boron-doped diamond) and tin had the highest average selectivity towards nitrogen gas evolution (55 % and 64 %, respectively) outperforming Pt, which only had 1% selectivity, and had comparable electrical energy per order removal of nitrate. Thus, earth-abundant elements for electrocatalysis hold tremendous promise as innovative, low-cost, and sustainable processes for the water treatment marketplace.
引用
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页数:9
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