A one-pot, hydrothermal synthesis of nitrogen and sulfur dual doped carbon aerogels is presented, derived from our previously published hydrothermal carbonization approach. Two co-monomers, S-(2-thienyl)-L-cysteine (TC) and 2-thienyl carboxaldehyde (TCA), were used for sulfur incorporation, giving rise to distinct morphologies and varying doping levels of sulfur. Nitrogen-doping levels of 5 wt% and sulfur-doping levels of 1 wt% (using TCA) to 4 wt% (using TC) were obtained. A secondary pyrolysis step was used to further tune the carbon aerogel conductivity and heteroatom binding states. By comparing solely nitrogen-doped with nitrogen- and sulfur-doped carbon aerogels, it was observed that the presence of sulfur improves the overall electrocatalytic activity of the carbon material in both basic and acidic media. This study of the synergistic effect of combined sulfur- and nitrogen-doping in the catalysis of the “oxygen reduction reaction” (ORR) is expected to be significant to future research concerning the improvement of heterogeneous, metal-free, carbon-based catalysts

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Hydrothermal carbonization of carbohydrates, here glucose as a model, in saltwater mixtures results in high surface area carbonaceous materials with surface areas up to 650 m 2 g À1 where porosity is created by aggregation of very small primary nanoparticles, similar to aerogels or high surface area soot. These materials can be obtained by simple washing with water and are useful without further activation processes. Furthermore, no special technical equipment for isolation is needed since the materials are exceptionally stable throughout vacuum drying, thus keeping the overall approach sustainable and very simple. Synthesis and methods Materials and methods D-(+)-Glucose was purchased from Roth Chemicals. Lithium chloride, sodium chloride, potassium chloride and zinc

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