High-efficiency oxygen reduction to hydrogen peroxide catalyzed by oxidized carbon materials

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11168403-B2
Application number	US-201816221122-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 14, 2018
Priority date	Dec 15, 2017
Publication date	Nov 9, 2021
Grant date	Nov 9, 2021

Abstract

Improved electrochemical production of hydrogen peroxide is provided with a surface-oxidized carbon catalyst. The carbon can be, for example, carbon black or carbon nanotubes. The oxidation of the carbon can be performed, for example, by heating the carbon in nitric acid, or by heating the carbon in a base. The resulting carbon catalyst can have a distinctive oxygen is peak in its X-ray photoelectron spectrum.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of electrochemical production of hydrogen peroxide, the method comprising:
performing surface oxidation of a carbon precursor to provide a surface-oxidized carbon catalyst, wherein the surface oxidation is performed by mixing a nanostructured carbon precursor with poly (ethylene oxide) to produce a mixture and carbonizing the mixture;
providing an electrochemical cell configured for the electrochemical production of hydrogen peroxide, wherein the surface-oxidized carbon catalyst is disposed on a working electrode of the electrochemical cell; and
providing electrical current to the electrochemical cell to produce hydrogen peroxide.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the carbon precursor comprises carbon nanotubes.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the carbon precursor comprises carbon black.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the surface oxidation produces oxygen functional groups on the carbon precursor.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the oxygen functional groups include —C—O—C and —COOH.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the surface-oxidized carbon catalyst has an X-ray photoelectron spectrum having an oxygen is peak.

Assignees

• Univ Leland Stanford Junior

Inventors

• Cui Yi
• Lu Zhiyi
• Chen Guangxu

Classifications

• H01M8/083

  Alkaline fuel cells · CPC title

• C25B11/065

  Carbon · CPC title

• C25B11/054

  Electrodes comprising electrocatalysts supported on a carrier · CPC title

• B01J37/12

  Oxidising · CPC title

• B01J21/185

  Carbon nanotubes (carbon nanotubes per se C01B32/15) · CPC title