Oxygen Vacancy Boosts the V2O5 Performance for the Electrochemical H2O2 Product

On-site electrochemical hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) generation via the two-electron oxygen reduction reaction (2e– ORR), as a cost-effective alternative to the anthraquinone process, relies on the exploitation of excellent activity and the stability catalyst. In this study, we reveal that by modulating the oxygen vacancy (Ov) on V2O5 with the H2 treatment, high activity and a selective oxygen reduction for H2O2 production can be obtained with the basic electrolyte, showing a 92.32% selectivity within a wide range of potential. Combined spectroscopic results demonstrate that the enhanced performance of the 2e– ORR originates from the introduction of the Ov, which adjusts the electron structure of V2O5. The DFT analysis reveals that the Ov improves the adsorption of the oxygen on V2O5 and optimizes the oxygen reaction path superior to H2O2. Moreover, the V2O5-300 catalyst presented an excellent performance in the electrodegradation of antibiotics, indicating the application potential for environmental protection. This work provides an insight into the design of the metal oxides for effective H2O2 generation.