Literature Seminar
My literature seminar will investigate recent advances in the field of metal-free catalysts for the reduction of dinitrogen to ammonia. Ammonia is a critical component of fertilizers, and is not produced naturally in large quantities. The nitrogen reduction reaction is one of the most important industrial chemical processes, as it enables the mass production of ammonia which currently sustains the food supply of more than 50% of the worlds population. Due to the intense energy requirements of the current industrial processes, new generation catalysts capable of ambient nitrogen reduction are highly sought after. The Sun group has recently published work detailing the first example of ambient nitrogen reduction by boron phosphide nanoparticles. Using experimental and computational evidence, the group asserts that phosphorus plays an integral role in boosting the catalytic activity of the boron.