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Synthesis of B-doped C3N4 nanosheets by secondary sintering for enhanced electrocatalytic nitrogen fixation performance

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Abstract

Electrochemical nitrogen fixation has received great attention in recent years due to its reliable and stable electrolytic efficiency. In this work, boron-doped carbon nitride with π-electron delocalization and vacancies was prepared by an in situ decomposition-thermal polymerization method. A series of characterizations were utilized to analyze the structure, morphology, and property. The results demonstrated that the secondary sintering and boron doping enhanced π-electron delocalization and induced the nitrogen vacancies of g-C3N4. The 0.24% boron-doped g-C3N4 electrocatalyst achieved the best ammonia yield (5.4 μg·h−1·mgcat−1) and the highest Faraday efficiency (14.1%) at −0.7 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode in 0.1 M Na2SO4. Furthermore, a feasible mechanism was proposed for the electrochemical nitrogen reduction process.

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Funding

Financial support for this project was provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51702023).

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Correspondence to Xiaxi Yao.

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Wang, X., Huang, J., Hu, F. et al. Synthesis of B-doped C3N4 nanosheets by secondary sintering for enhanced electrocatalytic nitrogen fixation performance. J Nanopart Res 23, 63 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11051-021-05177-6

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