Electrocatalytic Activity of Heteroatom-Doped Carbon Materials

Heteroatom-doped carbon materials, in which non-carbon elements such as nitrogen, phosphorus, sulphur or boron are incorporated into graphitic frameworks, have emerged as versatile electrocatalysts. Doping alters the local electronic structure, creating charge-polarised sites that facilitate adsorption and activation of small molecules, notably oxygen, protons and carbon dioxide. The resulting materials combine high conductivity, tunable porosity and chemical robustness, offering a sustainable alternative to precious metals in reactions such as the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO2RR). Advances in synthetic control have enabled precise placement of single atoms or clusters, optimisation of defect density and hierarchical porosity, and scalable fabrication from biomass or polymer precursors. These developments underpin diverse applications in fuel cells, water splitting, rechargeable metal–air batteries and CO2 conversion, highlighting the global significance of low-cost, metal-free electrocatalysts for clean energy technologies.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated that atomically dispersed transition-metal centres anchored on nitrogen-doped carbon can achieve near-unity selectivity for CO2 electroreduction to CO, with low overpotentials and high current densities, due to synergistic interactions between the metal site and adjacent pyridinic nitrogens. Another report on phosphorus-enriched carbon nanoarchitectures revealed ultra-low overpotentials (<50 mV) for the hydrogen evolution reaction in acidic media, attributing performance to P-induced modulation of the carbon lattice and enhanced proton adsorption kinetics. Furthermore, dual-doping strategies combining boron and nitrogen in three-dimensional carbon frameworks have been shown to boost ORR activity under both alkaline and acidic conditions, rivalling commercial platinum catalysts while maintaining long-term stability in fuel-cell environments.

Electrocatalytic Activity of Heteroatom-Doped Carbon Materials publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in electrocatalytic activity of heteroatom-doped carbon materials across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Electrocatalyst: A material that accelerates electrochemical reactions by lowering activation energies at electrode surfaces.

Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR): The four-electron process in which O₂ is reduced to water or hydroxide, critical in fuel cells and metal–air batteries.

Hydrogen evolution reaction (HER): The electrochemical production of H₂ from protons, fundamental to water-splitting technologies.

Carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO2RR): Conversion of CO₂ into value-added chemicals or fuels via electron and proton transfer.

Heteroatom doping: Introduction of non-carbon elements into the carbon lattice to create active sites and tune electronic properties.

Pyridinic nitrogen: A nitrogen atom bonded to two carbon atoms at the edge of a graphene layer, donating lone-pair electrons and enhancing catalytic activity.

References

1. Multiple heteroatom-doped few-layer carbons for the electrochemical oxygen reduction reaction. Journal of Materials Chemistry A (2018).
2. Ligin-derived graphene-like ultrathin carbon materials for ORR catalysis. Journal of Physics Conference Series (2024).