Recent Progress in Nanostructured Catalysts for Sulfide Oxidation Reaction Coupled Water Electrolysis

Water electrolysis is widely regarded as a sustainable approach for hydrogen production. Recently, coupling thermodynamically favorable sulfide oxidation reaction (SOR) with the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), has emerged as an effective strategy to reduce energy input while enabling simultaneous sulfide wastewater treatment and energy-efficient hydrogen production. This review provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances in SOR-assisted water electrolysis, with a particular emphasis on nanostructure engineering strategies for high-performance electrocatalysts. We first elucidate the fundamental mechanisms of SOR and HER, highlighting key intermediates, reaction pathways, and kinetic limitations. Subsequently, state-of-the-art catalyst design strategies are systematically summarized, including single-atom design, vacancy engineering, heteroatom doping, alloying, interfacial engineering, and surface regulation, with a focus on how these approaches modulate electronic structures, optimize adsorption behaviors, and enhance catalytic performance. In addition, emerging applications such as self-powered hydrogen production systems and SOR-assisted seawater electrolysis are discussed to demonstrate the practical potential of this technology. Finally, current challenges and future perspectives are outlined to provide valuable insights into the rational design of advanced electrocatalysts and the development of sustainable SOR-related electrochemical technologies.