A gold catalyst of Au/ pyrenyl-graphdiyne (Pyr-GDY) was prepared by anchoring small size of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) on the surface of Pyr-GDY for electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (eNRR), in which Au NPs with a size of approximately 3.69 nm was evenly distributed on spongy-like porous Pyr-GDY. The catalyst exhibited a good electrocatalytic activity for N₂ reduction in a nitrogen-saturated electrolyte, with an ammonia yield of 32.1 μg·h^-1·mg_cat^-1 at -0.3 V (vs RHE), 3.5 times higher than that of Au/C (Au NPs anchored on carbon black). In addition, Au/Pyr-GDY showed a Faraday efficiency (FE) of 26.9% for eNRR, and a good catalysis durability for over 22 h.

电催化二氧化碳(CO₂)还原被认为是将CO₂转化为可再生能源产品的一种有前途的方法。开发性能优异的电催化剂高效完成这一重要反应是关键。镍基催化剂广泛应用于电催化CO₂还原研究，但是，镍纳米颗粒经常表现较差的催化性能。在本文中，通过在氮气气氛中高温热解镍基金属有机骨架(MOF)、尿素和炭黑混合物，获得了镍纳米颗粒负载于多孔碳氮中的催化材料(Ni_NPs-NC)。有趣的是，Ni_NPs-NC在H型和流动相电池中都表现出优异的CO₂电还原性能。在H型电解池和−0.67 – −1.07 V vs. RHE (可逆氢电极)电位窗口内，Ni_NPs-NC催化CO₂还原为CO的法拉第效率大于90%，其中，在−0.87 V vs. RHE时，CO的法拉第效率约为100%。在流动相电解池和−0.50 – −0.70 V vs. RHE电位窗口内，Ni_NPs-NC催化CO₂还原为CO的选择性大于95%。电化学阻抗谱图和塔菲尔斜率表征显示，Ni_NPs-NC的高催化活性归因于其在催化过程中的快速电荷转移。本文提供了一种制备高效CO₂电还原催化剂的方法。