High-performance electrochemical oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural over bimetallic Ni2Mo3N/NF via enhanced structural reconstruction

초록

A bimetallic Ni2Mo3N catalyst was directly synthesized on Ni foam (Ni2Mo3N/NF) via a simple one-step annealing process. During the initial electrochemical operation, the Ni2Mo3N/NF undergoes structural reconstruction, and the reconstructed Ni2Mo3N/NF exhibited outstanding activity toward electrochemical oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), delivering nearly 100 % HMF conversion, 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) yield of 98.47 %, and Faradaic efficiency of 97.20 % at an applied potential of 1.45 V vs. RHE, together with excellent stability over repeated cycling tests. Mechanistic studies revealed that selective Mo leaching during electrochemical operation creates defect sites that facilitate structural reconstruction into NiOOH, which acts as the active phase for HMF oxidation. This reconstruction along with the creation of abundant active sites accounts for the superior activity and durability of Ni2Mo3N/NF compared to Ni foam. These results demonstrate that Ni2Mo3N/NF is an efficient catalyst for HMF valorization and offer useful guidelines for designing bimetallic transition metal nitrides through structural reconstruction strategies for future biomass and energy applications.

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