Recent Advances in Electrochemical Oxygen Reduction to H2O2: Catalyst and Cell Design

Electrochemical production of H2O2 from O2 is a promising alternative to the energy-intensive anthraquinone process that is currently used as an industry standard. Although most research on the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) has focused on the 4-electron pathway to water relevant to fuel cells, the 2-electron ORR to produce H2O2 is also of significant commercial interest. The first half of this Perspective deals with the progress made in developing noble metal, carbon-based, and single-atom electrocatalysts and highlights the design strategies employed to obtain high selectivity toward H2O2. The second half addresses the challenges of large-scale production and how results obtained using a rotating ring disk electrode (RRDE) can be translated into commercially viable flow cells. This Perspective focuses on the design of catalysts and cells that will enable industrial-scale electrochemical H2O2 production.