Advances in Catalysts for Urea Electrosynthesis Utilizing CO2 and Nitrogenous Materials: A Mechanistic Perspective

Mengfei Zhang; Tianjian Feng; Xuanming Che; Yuhan Wang; Pengxian Wang; Mao Chai; Menglei Yuan

doi:10.3390/ma17092142

Advances in Catalysts for Urea Electrosynthesis Utilizing CO₂ and Nitrogenous Materials: A Mechanistic Perspective

Materials (Basel). 2024 May 3;17(9):2142. doi: 10.3390/ma17092142.

Authors

Mengfei Zhang¹, Tianjian Feng¹, Xuanming Che¹, Yuhan Wang¹, Pengxian Wang¹, Mao Chai², Menglei Yuan³

Affiliations

¹ Queen Mary University of London Engineering School, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710129, China.
² Guoneng Shanxi Hequ Power Generation Co., Ltd., Xinzhou 036500, China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Solidification Processing, Center for Nano Energy Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710072, China.

Abstract

Electrocatalytic urea synthesis from CO₂ and nitrogenous substances represents an essential advance for the chemical industry, enabling the efficient utilization of resources and promoting sustainable development. However, the development of electrocatalytic urea synthesis has been severely limited by weak chemisorption, poor activation and difficulties in C-N coupling reactions. In this review, catalysts and corresponding reaction mechanisms in the emerging fields of bimetallic catalysts, MXenes, frustrated Lewis acid-base pairs and heterostructures are summarized in terms of the two central mechanisms of molecule-catalyst interactions as well as chemical bond cleavage and directional coupling, which provide new perspectives for improving the efficiency of electrocatalytic synthesis of urea. This review provides valuable insights to elucidate potential electrocatalytic mechanisms.

Keywords: catalyst design; electrocatalytic; microscopic mechanisms; urea electrocatalysis.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the Qin Chuangyuan Cites High-level Innovation and Entrepreneurship Talent Programs (QCYRCXM-2022-335), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (G2022KY05111) and Anhui Province International Research Center on Advanced Building Materials (JZCL2303KF).