Abstract Ammonia, as an essential chemical and a promising fuel, has been predominantly synthesized by the Haber-Bosch process since the beginning of the 20th century. However, the harsh conditions, high energy consumption, and large carbon footprint of this century-old process enforce human being to develop clean and sustainable ammonia synthesis technologies. The electrochemical synthesis of ammonia has advantages of mild operating conditions, zero emission of carbon dioxide, capability to store renewable electricity in chemical bonds, and possibilities for distributed ammonia production. Benefiting from these merits, the electrochemical synthesis of ammonia is expected as a promising alternative to the Haber-Bosch process and has been extensively explored. Research on the electrochemical synthesis of ammonia by nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) can be principally divided into several aspects including the development of catalysts, innovations on the configurations of electrolytic cells, strategies to improve the selectivity, and verification of ammonia synthesis results. Moreover, the electrochemical reduction of nitrogenous pollutants has also been attempted to produce ammonia. In this review, we summarize the recent progress on these points and conclude with perspectives on challenges and future directions of electrochemical ammonia synthesis.

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电化学合成氨：进展与挑战

摘要 氨作为一种重要的化学物质和一种很有前途的燃料，自 20 世纪初以来，主要采用 Haber-Bosch 工艺合成。然而，这一百年过程的恶劣条件、高能耗和大碳足迹迫使人类开发清洁和可持续的氨合成技术。氨的电化学合成具有操作条件温和、二氧化碳零排放、能够在化学键中储存可再生电力以及分布式氨生产的可能性等优点。受益于这些优点，氨的电化学合成有望成为 Haber-Bosch 工艺的有前途的替代方案，并已得到广泛探索。氮还原反应（NRR）电化学合成氨的研究主要分为催化剂的开发、电解槽结构的创新、提高选择性的策略以及氨合成结果的验证等几个方面。此外，还尝试电化学还原含氮污染物以产生氨。在这篇综述中，我们总结了这些方面的最新进展，并总结了电化学氨合成的挑战和未来方向。也曾尝试对含氮污染物进行电化学还原以产生氨。在这篇综述中，我们总结了这些方面的最新进展，并总结了电化学氨合成的挑战和未来方向。也曾尝试对含氮污染物进行电化学还原以产生氨。在这篇综述中，我们总结了这些方面的最新进展，并总结了电化学氨合成的挑战和未来方向。