Selenium-doped carbon materials: synthesis and applications for sustainable technologies

Abstract

Heteroatom-doping of carbonaceous materials and (nano)structures permits alteration of their fundamental physicochemical properties and thus amplifies the range of their potential applications. While nitrogen-doping dominated this research area, doping and co-doping with other non-metal and metal elements proved to be equally efficient strategies to tune carbonaceous materials’ characteristics. Heavier chalcogens are considered atypical carbon dopants due to their large atomic radii, high polarizability, and electronegativity comparable to that of carbon. Se-doped carbons are much less common than their S-doped counterparts, yet recently, they appeared as attractive functional materials for a range of sustainable technologies. This review depicts progress in Se-doped and co-doped carbonaceous materials from 2012 to the present. The report is divided into three major parts: first, the versatile chemistry of selenium and the significance of Se-doping is presented, followed by a variety of preparation methods, and finally, prominent examples of advanced applications in the fields of heterogeneous (electro)catalysis, energy conversion/storage, and pollutant neutralization.