Chem. J. Chinese Universities ›› 2023, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (5): 20220775.doi: 10.7503/cjcu20220775

• Review • Previous Articles    

Recent Process of Carbon-based Catalysts for the Production of H2O2 by Electrocatalytic Oxygen Reduction: Strategies, Calculation and Practical Applications

ZHANG Xiaoyu1, QU Gan1, XUE Dongping1, YAN Wenfu2(), ZHANG Jianan1()   

  1. 1.College of Materials Science and Engineering,Zhengzhou University,Zhengzhou 450001,China
    2.State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry,College of Chemistry,Jilin University,Changchun 130012,China
  • Received:2022-12-30 Online:2023-05-10 Published:2023-02-24
  • Contact: YAN Wenfu, ZHANG Jianan E-mail:yanw@jlu.edu.cn;zjn@zzu.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    the National Natural Science Foundation of China(21875221);the Key Scientific and Technological Project of Henan Province, China(222102240082);the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(2022M722866);the Postgraduate Education Reform Project of Henan Province, China(2021SJGLX093Y);the International Talent Cooperation Program in Henan Province, China(HNGD2022036)

Abstract:

Hydrogen peroxide(H2O2) as a multifunctional and environmentally friendly oxidizer, plays a crucial role in industrial production, bleaching, disinfection, and wastewater treatment, etc. The traditional anthraquinone process is not the ideal choice for batch H2O2 production due to the disadvantages of environmental pollution, insecurity, and complicated process. Typically, H2O2 can be synthesized by the 2-electron(2e) oxygen reduction reaction(ORR) process, which process is a promising alternative to produce the H2O2 at a large scale. Carbon-based materials are considered as one kind of the best catalysts for 2e ORR due to their abundant reserves, low cost, adjustable structure, and good conductivity. Therefore, this paper reviews the research progress of carbon-based catalysts in 2eORR for H2O2. Firstly, the basic principle of 2e ORR is introduced, and the key factors affecting the ORR path are revealed. Then, density functional theory(DFT) employed to reveal the essence of catalytic active sites is introduced. After that, several effective strategies on catalysts for promoting the production of H2O2 are summarized in detail, including optimized single atom catalysts(SACs), defect engineering on catalyst surface, pyrrole nitrogen doping, oxygen-containing functional groups doping, and other heteroatoms(e.g. S, P, F) doping. At last, the deve-lopment of the practical applications in the devices for mass production of H2O2 are discussed. Finally, the potential opportunities and challenges in the future development of electrochemical synthesis of H2O2 are proposed.

Key words: H2O2, 2e? Oxygen reduction reaction, Carbon-based catalyst, Volcano plot, Electrolytic cell

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