Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells often underperform due to high overpotentials caused by sluggish kinetics. Specifically, the Pt-catalyzed oxygen reduction reaction at the cathode renders the energy efficiency well below the thermodynamic limit.
Stanford researchers at the Jaramillo, Nørskov, and Cargnello Labs have developed an improved system to generate NH3 (ammonia) from N2 and H2O via a low-pressure, electro-thermochemical, sustainable alternative to the conventional Haber-Bosch p