Constructing highly efficient electrocatalysts via interface manipulation and structural design to facilitate rapid electron transfer in electrocatalytic nitrate-to-ammonia conversion is crucial to attaining superior NH3 yield rate. Here, a Mott-Schottky type electrocatalyst of Co/In2O3 with a continuous fiber structure has been designed to boost the electrocatalytic nitrate-to-ammonia performance. The optimized Co/In2O3-1 catalyst exhibits an impressive NH3 yield rate of 70.1 mg cm-2 h-1 at –0.8 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), along with a NH3 faradaic efficiency (FE) of 93.34% at 0 V vs. RHE, greatly outperforming the single-component Co and In2O3 samples. The yield rate of the Co/In2O3-1 is also superior to most currently reported Co-based catalysts and heterostructured ones. Evidences from experiments and theoretical results confirm the formation of Mott-Schottky heterojunction, which achieves a Co site enriched with electrons, coupled with In2O3 facet enriched with holes, inducing an electron redistribution to promote the utilization of electroactive sites. Consequently, the reaction energy barrier for nitrate-to-ammonia is significantly reduced, further enhancing its yield efficiency.

This article is Open Access

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