Site items in: Electrochemical Ammonia

Panel discussion on next-generation ammonia synthesis
Article

This year’s Ammonia Energy Conference included a panel discussion on next-generation ammonia synthesis, moderated by Sarb Giddey (CSIRO, Australia), and featuring panelists Doug MacFarlane (Monash University, Australia), Karthish Manthiram (MIT, United States), and Michael Stoukides (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece). The panel discussed the direct fixation of nitrogen in the form of ammonia from water and air in a single electrochemical device, which is considered the “holy grail” of ammonia synthesis. During the panel, the participants gave their perspectives on the state of the art, and the obstacles and opportunities for progress.

ARENA's Investments in Renewable Hydrogen and Ammonia
Presentation

ARENA’s purpose is to improve the competitiveness of renewable energy technologies and increase the supply of renewable energy through innovation that benefits Australian consumers and businesses. By connecting investment, knowledge and people to deliver energy innovation, we are helping to build the foundation of a renewable energy ecosystem in Australia. We provide funding support to help the renewable hydrogen industry overcome barriers to its further development, such as the high cost of producing renewable hydrogen, limited regulatory frameworks for applications such as use in the natural gas network, under-developed end-use markets and insufficient demand to attract investment in projects. ARENA…

Monash team publishes Ammonia Economy Roadmap
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Earlier this month, Doug MacFarlane and his team of researchers at Monash University published A Roadmap to the Ammonia Economy in the journal Joule. The paper charts an evolution of ammonia synthesis “through multiple generations of technology development and scale-up.” It provides a clear assessment of “the increasingly diverse range of applications of ammonia as a fuel that is emerging,” and concludes with perspectives on the “broader scale sustainability of an ammonia economy,” with emphasis on the Nitrogen Cycle. The Roadmap is brilliant in its simple distillation of complex and competing technology developments across decades. It assesses the sustainability and scalability of three generations of ammonia synthesis technologies. Put simply, Gen1 is blue ammonia, Gen2 is green ammonia, and Gen3 is electrochemical ammonia. It also outlines the amount of research and development required before each could be broadly adopted (“commercial readiness”). The paper thus provides vital clarity on the role that each generation of technology could play in the energy transition, and the timing at which it could make its impact.

Mechanistic Insights into Electrochemical Nitrogen Reduction Reaction on Vanadium Nitride Nanoparticles
Presentation

Renewable production of ammonia, a building block for most fertilizers, via the electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (ENRR) is desirable; however, a selective electrocatalyst is lacking. Here we show that vanadium nitride (VN) nanoparticles are active, selective, and stable ENRR catalysts. ENRR with 15N2 as the feed produces both 14NH3 and 15NH3, which indicates that the reaction follows a Mars–van Krevelen mechanism. Ex situ and operando characterizations indicate that VN0.7O0.45 is the active phase for ENRR and the conversion of VN0.7O0.45 to the VN phase leads to catalyst deactivation. Quantitative isotopic labeling results identify the amounts of two different types of…

Presentation

Ammonia is an effective hydrogen storage medium due to ease of transport as liquid, high storage capacity (17.65%) and it can easily be converted to hydrogen by electro-chemical oxidation. Haber-Bosch process is used for the synthesis of ammonia which is energy intensive as it requires high temperature and pressure. It also causes intense carbon emissions as the hydrogen is produced by steam reforming. Alternatively, ammonia can be synthesized electrochemically at ambient conditions from nitrogen and water by employing renewable energy in the presence of an electro catalyst. The major challenge in electrochemical synthesis of ammonia is low Faradaic efficiency. This…

Presentation

Nitrogen fixation to ammonia (NH3) has attracted intensive attention because NH3 is the critical inorganic fertilizers and energy carrier. Haber-Bosch process, the industrial procedure for NH3 production, is confined to the extreme condition requirements. Hence, it is highly desirable to develop a renewable and environment-friendly route for nitrogen fixation to replace the conventional technology. Electrochemical nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is one of the most promising techniques since the electrical energy could be produced by synergy with the fast-growing renewable energy. However, electrochemical NRR approach faces huge challenge in breaking extremely high N≡N bond energy (940.95 kJ mol–1) in dinitrogen molecules.…

Presentation

The advance of efficient and economical energy carrier technology is an important challenge in terms of storage and transport of hydrogen fuels produced from renewable energy. Ammonia is a promising candidate of energy carrier because of high energy density and easy liquefaction as well as a carbon-free fuel.1 Electrochemical synthesis has a potential for an efficient ammonia production in comparison with the industrial Haber–Bosch process. In our previous study, we observed the improvement of electrochemical synthesis of ammonia using iron-based electrode catalyst such as K-Al-Fe-BaCe0.9Y0.1O3 (BCY).2 In the study, basically, H2 decomposition occurs to form protons in the anode side,…

Energy Storage through Electrochemical Ammonia Synthesis Using Proton-Conducting Ceramics
Presentation

In this presentation, we provide an overview of an ambitious project to store renewable energy through electrochemical synthesis of ammonia. The joint project between the Colorado School of Mines (Golden, CO) and FuelCell Energy, Inc. (Danbury, CT) is supported through the U.S. Department of Energy ARPA-E ‘REFUEL’ program. The research and development team seeks to harness the unique properties of proton-conducting ceramics to activate chemical and electrochemical reactions for efficient and cost-effective synthesis of ammonia. The system concept is shown in Figure 1; renewable electricity is used to drive electrolysis of the H2O feedstock to form hydrogen. This electrochemically produced…

Technoeconomic Requirements for Sustainable Ammonia Production
Presentation

Ammonia, the feedstock for all nitrogen fertilizers, is produced via the Haber-Bosch process, which is responsible for 1-2% of global carbon dioxide emissions each year. An attractive solution to this problem is to create an electrochemical ammonia synthesis process that can produce ammonia using only air, water, and renewable electricity. Researchers across the world have been working toward such a solution for the last several decades, but so far, no economically viable alternative has been created. The Haber-Bosch process is one of the largest-scale, most highly optimized chemical processes in the world; it is very difficult to find a cheaper…