Ammonia synthesis using metal nitrides

Tea and coffee will be served after this seminar in WP1.05

Abstract
Industrial scale ammonia synthesis is accomplished via the Haber Bosch Process. This process which is conducted at moderately high temperature and very high pressure using a very pure feedstream mixture, is credited with sustaining 40% of the global population through access to synthetic fertiliser. The hydrogen for the process is derived from industrial steam reforming and this means that the process has a large carbon footprint, generally being credited with the production of ca 1.6% of anthropogenic CO2 production. In addition, in its entirety, the process consumes 1-2% of the global energy demand. The increasing demand for synthetic fertiliser, coupled to the potential use of ammonia as a fuel or as a store for sustainable energy, is driving significant interest in the development of new heterogeneous catalysts for ammonia synthesis, such that it could be undertaken in a sustainable manner on a localised scale. This presentation will consider the potential use of metal nitrides as new alternative catalysts from a fundamental point of view.