Optimizing Heteroatom Doping for Efficient Hydrogen Peroxide Production via Oxygen Reduction

Electrocatalytic oxygen reduction has emerged as a promising and environmentally sustainable method for the on-site production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Herein, we designed and synthesized a series of porous carbon materials (SNC) with varied N and S doping ratios by using a facile pyrolysis method. Among them, the optimized catalyst exhibits excellent activity (2.1 mA cm–2 at 0.2 V) for the two-electron oxygen reduction reaction (2e– ORR) with high H2O2 selectivity of 68%. Carbon atoms near graphite N are revealed as the main active centers for 2e– ORR catalysis. The impressive performance is attributed to the abundant graphitic N sites, the advanced porous structure resulting from S atom stripping, and the electronic effect caused by S codoping. This work highlights the importance of comprehensive optimization of activity and selectivity in designing 2e– ORR catalysts and presents a facile and low-cost method for preparing heteroatom-doped carbon materials.