Size-induced d band center upshift of copper for efficient nitrate reduction to ammonia.

Electrocatalytic nitrate reduction (NO3RR) technique has emerged as a hotspot in NH3 production, for its practicability, and a series of advanced electrocatalysts with high activity and robust stability needed to be constructed in today's era. In this work, size-tunable Cu nanoparticles on porous nitrogen-doped hexagonal carbon nanorods (Cu@NHC) were reasonably designed and served for catalyzing NO3RR in neutral media. Especially, Cu30%@NHC demonstrated a remarkable electroactivity for NH3 production as it showed a suitable grain size with massive catalytic centers and favorable d band structure with faster *NO3--to-*NO2- catalytic dynamics. As expected, Cu30%@NHC (3628.28 µg h-1 mgcat.-1) had a much higher NH3 yield than those for Cu20%@NHC (1268.42 µg h-1 mgcat.-1) and Cu40%@NHC (725.03 µg h-1 mgcat.-1). And those collected NH3 products indeed derived from NO3RR process revealed by 15N isotope-labeling and systemic control tests. Moreover, Cu30%@NHC was also durable for NO3RR bulk electrolysis with minor loss in activity. This work offered an effective modifying tactics to boost NO3RR catalysis and could guide the design of other advanced electrocatalysts via size-induced surface engineering.

Factors influencing Chinese public attitudes toward farm animal welfare.

A comprehensive understanding of current Chinese public attitudes toward farm animal welfare and the relevant influencing factors is essential for improving farm animal welfare and promoting further development of animal husbandry. The attitudes of 3,726 respondents in China were investigated using paper and online questionnaires. Three components (affective, cognitive, and behavioral) of attitudes toward farm animal welfare were assessed using 18 items designed based on the literature review. Influential factors of attitudes toward farm animal welfare were explored via tobit regression. The results revealed that the Chinese public not only considers farm animals to be emotional and sentient but are also sympathetic toward farm animals that suffer inhumane treatment. Although they have limited knowledge about farm animal welfare, the public believes improving farm animal welfare is beneficial, especially for food safety and human health. The Chinese public prefers regulation policies to incentive policies for improving farm animal welfare. The main factors influencing attitudes toward farm animal welfare included gender, age, education, monthly household income, area of residence, farm animal raising experience, and attention to farm animal welfare events. The effect of these influencing factors on attitudes varied. These findings provide a basis for improving Chinese public attitudes toward farm animal welfare. The implications of formulating and implementing effective policies to improve the Chinese public attitudes toward farm animal welfare were discussed.

Basal Plane-Activated Boron-Doped MoS2 Nanosheets for Efficient Electrochemical Ammonia Synthesis.

Under the dual pressure of energy crisis and environmental pollution, ammonia (NH3 ) is an indispensable chemical product in the global economy. The electrocatalytic synthesis of NH3 directly from nitrogen and water using renewable electricity has become one of the most attractive and important topics. Basal plane-activated boron-doped MoS2 nanosheets (B-MoS2 ) as a non-noble metal catalyst with excellent performance for N2 electroreduction are synthesized by a facile one-step hydrothermal method. In 0.1 m Na2 SO4 solution, MoS2 nanosheets doped with 300 mg boric acid (B-MoS2 -300) give rise to a good ammonia yield rate of 75.77 µg h-1 mg-1 cat. at -0.75 V vs. RHE, and an excellent Faradaic efficiency of 40.11 % at -0.60 V vs. RHE. In addition, the B-MoS2 -300 nanosheets show good selectivity and chemical stability, and no hydrazine (N2 H4 ) by-product is generated during the reaction. 15 N isotopic labeling confirms that nitrogen in produced ammonia originates from N2 in the electrolyte. On the one hand, the high conductivity of MoS2 guarantees guarantees a high electron transfer rate from nitrogen to ammonia; on the other hand, the successful incorporation of heteroatom B enlarges the interlayer spacing of MoS2 , and the B atom can act as an active site for basal plane activation, providing more active sites for the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR). Density functional theory calculations show that the doping of B activates the base plane of 1T-MoS2 , which makes the adsorption of N2 on the base plane easier and promotes the NRR.