Photo & electrochemical Urea production by Recycling Emissions of CO2 and NOx (PURE-CO2 and NOx): Deciphering Mechanistic Insights of Urea Formation

The PURE-CO2 and NOX project at Imperial College, London, aims to tackle the rising anthropogenic emissions of CO2 and NOx by pioneering a recycling solution that converts these gases into “urea” using photo and electrocatalytic processes. This multidisciplinary initiative merges the development of catalysts, reactor design, and unexplored in situ and operando spectroscopic studies to examine transient intermediates, reaction kinetics and pathways. The initial phase targets the identification of optimal cathode catalysts for the co-reduction of CO2 and NOx, focusing on the use of non-precious transition metals to synthesize a range of single atom catalysts. These are evaluated for their reduction efficacy alongside photoanode electrodes fabricated from n-Si and n-GaAs. Custom designed industrially relevant flow reactors then assess the reduction performance of these setups. Under Professor James Durrant’s supervision, rigorous in situ spectroscopic and time-resolved operando photoinduced absorption studies are conducted to elucidate the reaction intermediates, byproducts, reaction kinetics and feasible pathways. This innovative application of operando techniques to study the photo and electrocatalytic urea production reactions is novel and fills a significant gap in understanding both photo and electrocatalytic systems. The project holds potential to revolutionize the design of cost-effective, efficient catalysts, projecting an enhancement in reaction efficiency by 30-40%, potentially reducing urea production costs in industrial settings by 10-12%. This aligns closely with EU priorities, setting the stage for significant advancements in emission reduction technologies.