Surface engineering on bulk Cu2O for efficient electrosynthesis of urea

Zechuan Dai, Yanxu Chen, Huaikun Zhang, Mingyu Cheng, Bocheng Zhang, Pingyi Feng, Yafei Feng and Genqiang Zhang ()
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Zechuan Dai: University of Science and Technology of China
Yanxu Chen: University of Science and Technology of China
Huaikun Zhang: University of Science and Technology of China
Mingyu Cheng: University of Science and Technology of China
Bocheng Zhang: University of Science and Technology of China
Pingyi Feng: University of Science and Technology of China
Yafei Feng: University of Science and Technology of China
Genqiang Zhang: University of Science and Technology of China

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Electrochemical urea synthesis has recently emerged as a fascinating energy-efficient alternative route, while it remains challenging to achieve simultaneously high production rate and Faradaic efficiency. Herein, we realize an energy-favorable electrochemical C-N coupling path through CO2 and NO3− co-reduction at the heterointerfaces of Cu/Cu2O microparticles, generated by in-situ electrochemical engineering on bulk Cu2O. We achieve urea production rate of 632.1 μg h−1mgcat.−1 with a corresponding Faradaic efficiency of 42.3% at −0.3 V (versus RHE) under ambient conditions. Operando synchrotron radiation-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, along with theoretical calculations, reveals the coupling of intermediates NOH* and CO* at the heterointerfaces, benefiting from the modified electronic structure. This work provides a practical route for catalyst design and insights into urea electrosynthesis systems.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57708-7

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