@article{Yu2026, 
author = {Yifan Yu and Vasishta Somayaji and Zhijia Geng and Abraham J. Offen and Jiawei Liang and Jie Liu},
title = {Light-powered ambient-pressure ammonia synthesis using a plasmonic semiconducting catalyst},
year = {2026},
journal = {Nano Research},
volume = {19},
number = {1},
pages = {94908274},
keywords = {ammonia synthesis, ambient pressure, plasmonic semiconductor, nonthermal/photothermal mechanisms},
url = {https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.26599/NR.2025.94908274},
doi = {10.26599/NR.2025.94908274},
abstract = {Ammonia plays a critical role in our society, not only as the source for fertilizers and other essential chemicals, but also as a promising hydrogen carrier due to its high energy density and ease of storage and transportation. However, the conventional Haber–Bosch process is energy-intensive and costly. Developing a more energy efficient route for ammonia production is currently a holy grail in scientific society. This study reports a plasmonic semiconductor catalyst, molybdenum oxynitride (Mo2N/MoO2−x) nanosheet, that enables the ambient-pressure NH3 synthesis under light illumination. This catalyst achieves a remarkable NH3 production rate of 2338 µmol·g−1·h−1 at 400 °C and 857 µmol·g−1·h−1 at room temperature. Notably, we present the evidence for the coexistence of both nonthermal and photothermal effects, distinguishing this system from photothermally driven routes. This work demonstrates a viable pathway for NH3 production with low monetary and energetic investments and potential for distributed NH3 synthesis utilizing only water, air, and sunlight.}
}