Highly efficient decomposition of ammonia using high-entropy alloy catalysts

Pengfei Xie, Yonggang Yao, Zhennan Huang, Zhenyu Liu, Junlei Zhang, Tangyuan Li, Guofeng Wang (), Reza Shahbazian-Yassar (), Liangbing Hu () and Chao Wang ()
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Pengfei Xie: Johns Hopkins University
Yonggang Yao: University of Maryland
Zhennan Huang: University of Illinois
Zhenyu Liu: University of Pittsburgh
Junlei Zhang: Johns Hopkins University
Tangyuan Li: University of Maryland
Guofeng Wang: University of Pittsburgh
Reza Shahbazian-Yassar: University of Illinois
Liangbing Hu: University of Maryland
Chao Wang: Johns Hopkins University

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Ammonia represents a promising liquid fuel for hydrogen storage, but its large-scale application is limited by the need for precious metal ruthenium (Ru) as catalyst. Here we report on highly efficient ammonia decomposition using novel high-entropy alloy (HEA) catalysts made of earth abundant elements. Quinary CoMoFeNiCu nanoparticles are synthesized in a single solid-solution phase with robust control over the Co/Mo atomic ratio, including those ratios considered to be immiscible according to the Co-Mo bimetallic phase diagram. These HEA nanoparticles demonstrate substantially enhanced catalytic activity and stability for ammonia decomposition, with improvement factors achieving >20 versus Ru catalysts. Catalytic activity of HEA nanoparticles is robustly tunable by varying the Co/Mo ratio, allowing for the optimization of surface property to maximize the reactivity under different reaction conditions. Our work highlights the great potential of HEAs for catalyzing chemical transformation and energy conversion reactions.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-11848-9

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