A combined experimental and computational study published in Nature Catalysis shows promising results for a new class of catalysts producing ammonia under mild conditions. The production of ammonia amounts to about 200 megatons per year. This makes it the second-most produced chemical in the world, surpassed only by sulfuric acid. There are several means of producing ammonia, but the Haber-Bosch process remains the most prevalent, accounting for about 90% of total production. Haber-Bosch and the other processes involved in industrial-scale production require high temperatures (more than 400°C) and high pressure (more than 150 bar). Those conditions are needed to break the strong bonds in nitrogen and react with hydrogen to form ammonia (NH 3 ). These processes, taking up around 1% of global energy consumption, are largely fossil fuel-based. Hence, ammonia is the most greenhouse gas-intensive chemical-making reaction globally, totalling roughly 1.5% of total global CO 2 emissions. In […]