The chemistry of hydrogen peroxide: Applications and analytical techniques for detection in water and food matrices

The chemistry of hydrogen peroxide is fascinating, as it is a powerful oxidant widely used in diverse applications. It can be activated to generate reactive oxygen species, playing a central role in advanced oxidative processes for water treatment. Additionally, it serves as a food additive to extend shelf life. This review presents a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of hydrogen peroxide, covering production methods with a brief historical perspective and key chemical reactions. It also details the various activation pathways for generating radical species and explores analytical methods for determining peroxide in both water and food. Notably, to the best of our knowledge, there is no existing review in the literature that consolidates all these aspects, production, activation mechanisms, applications, and analytical determination, into a single, integrated work, highlighting the novelty and relevance of this contribution.