Electroactive nitrogen–engineered MoN nanospheres for electrochemical uranium recovery from seawater

The vast reserves of uranium in seawater offer a sustainable feedstock for nuclear energy, yet their exploitation is hindered by ultralow concentrations and a complex ionic milieu. We report a structurally engineered molybdenum nitride–carbon cloth (E-MoN/CC) electrode that combines high surface area (95.8 m 2 /g) with tailored electronic structure for highly efficient electrochemical uranium recovery. Nitrogen incorporation into MoN creates catalytically active sites that accelerate the reduction of uranyl species, while etching-induced hierarchical porosity enhances electron transport and facilitates ion diffusion. In uranium-spiked artificial seawater (10 ppm), E-MoN/CC delivers a capacity of 586 mg/g at −0.9 V vs. RHE, exceeding MoO₃/CC by 1.2-fold, and achieves 99% removal within 1 h. The electrode sustains a record the maximum extraction capacity of 11,990 mg/g in uranium-spiked seawater, while maintaining negligible performance loss over seven cycles. This work establishes metal nitride architectures as robust, scalable platforms for green electrochemical uranium extraction from complex marine environments. Etched MoN nanospheres anchored on carbon cloth offer abundant active sites and enhanced conductivity for efficient and sustainable uranium recovery from seawater.