Refining Metal-Free Carbon Nanoreactors through Electronic and Geometric Comodification for Boosted H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> Electrosynthesis toward Efficient Water Decontamination
Hydrogen peroxide (H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>) electrosynthesis using metal-free carbon materials via the 2e<sup>-</sup> oxygen reduction pathway has sparked considerable research interest. However, the scalable preparation of carbon electrocatalysts to achieve satisfactory H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> yield in acidic media remains a grand challenge. Here, we present the design of a carbon nanoreactor series that integrates precise O/N codoping alongside well-regulated geometric structures targeting high-efficiency electrosynthesis of H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>. Theoretical computations reveal that strategic N/O codoping facilitates partial electron transfer from C sites to O sites, realizing electronic rearrangement that optimizes C-site adsorption of *OOH. Concurrently, the O-O bond in *OOH is strengthened by charge transfer from antibonding to π-orbitals, stabilizing the O-O bond and preventing its dissociation. The carbon nanoreactor with a hollow bowl geometry also facilitates the mass transport of O<sub>2</sub> and H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>, achieving an H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> selectivity of 96% in acidic media. Furthermore, a flow cell integrated with the refined nanoreactor catalyst achieves an impressive H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> production rate of 2942.4 mg L<sup>-1</sup> h<sup>-1</sup>, coupled with stable operation of nearly 80 h, surpassing the state-of-the-art metal-free analogs. The feasibility of the electro-synthesized H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> is further demonstrated to be highly efficient in wastewater remediation.
Authors
- Jingyu Sun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9812-3046)
- Shi Xue Dou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3824-7693)
- Laiquan Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3301-9029)
- Yifei Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3386-7677)
- Guangheng Chen
- Yuhan Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6288-2112)
- Yongzhen Peng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4702-3774)
- Beibei Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9857-1263)
Institutions
- University of Shanghai for Science and Technology (CN)
- Nanjing University of Science and Technology (CN)
- Beijing University of Technology (CN)
- Soochow University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Environmental Science & Technology
- Published
- 2024-11-29
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c11612
- Citations
- 14
- Primary Topic
- Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.43