SusChEM: Photocatalytic Generation of Hydrogen from Water using Organic Nanofibril Catalysts

SusChEM：使用有机纳米纤维催化剂光催化从水中产生氢气

• 批准号: 1502433
• 负责人: Ling Zang
• 金额: $ 30万
• 依托单位: University of Utah
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2015
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2015-09-01 至 2018-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1502433&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SusChEM; Photocatalytic; Generation; Hydrogen; Water

PI: Ling ZangProposal Number: 1502433Hydrogen gas is a clean and zero-carbon fuel which can be converted to electrical power using a device called a fuel cell for electric vehicle or industrial applications. Most of the hydrogen gas produced today comes from processing of natural gas, primarily from fossil fuel resources. However, future sources of hydrogen will need to come from renewable resources if they are to become part of our sustainable energy future. The goal of this project is to develop inexpensive, polymer-based materials that will convert water into hydrogen gas using sunlight to drive the reaction. In the proposed research, electrically conductive organic polymers will be extruded into nanometer diameter fibrils designed to capture the suns photons. Catalyst materials imbedded in the polymer help to split apart the water molecule to hydrogen and oxygen gas using these absorbed photons through a process called photocatalysis. The research will make and test the performance of these materials for generation of hydrogen from water. Students involved in this project will be trained at the interface of renewable energy and nanotechnology. The project will also develop hydrogen production demonstration for Natural History Museum of Utah to illustrate renewable energy research to public audiences.The goal of this research is to synthesize and characterize the performance of new organic polymer nanofibril based photocatalytic materials for the splitting of water into hydrogen gas. These nanofibers, which contain both polymer and metal co-catalyst nanoparticles, are multifunctional, combining the properties of tunable band structure, visible spectral response, and large surface area. In the research plan, the organic polymer nanofibers will be synthesized from building-block molecules containing donor-acceptor moieties responsive to wide range of visible light. The donor-acceptor material interface will also be engineered for increased charge separation upon illumination, as well as for the efficient transport of the photo-generated electrons to the co-catalyst sites that convert protons to hydrogen. This interface will also be engineered to maximize the intake of the photogenerated electrons while preventing their recombination with cationic radicals. Time-resolved electron spin resonance measurements will characterize how interfacial electron-scavenging depends on particle size and energy level alignment in the polymer and co-catalyst. Hydrogen production activity of the synthesized nanofibril photocatalysts will be correlated to quantum efficiency, turnover numbers, and dependence on irradiation wavelength. As part of the educational activities, workshops based on solar fuels and solar photovoltaics topics will be offered through Utah Science Center and the NSF-sponsored Nanodays at Nano Institute of Utah.

主要研究者：Ling Zang提案编号：1502433氢气是一种清洁的零碳燃料，可以使用称为燃料电池的装置将其转化为电能，用于电动汽车或工业应用。 今天生产的大部分氢气来自天然气的加工，主要来自化石燃料资源。 然而，未来的氢资源将需要来自可再生资源，如果它们要成为我们可持续能源未来的一部分。该项目的目标是开发廉价的聚合物基材料，利用阳光驱动反应将水转化为氢气。 在拟议的研究中，导电有机聚合物将被挤压成纳米直径的纤维，旨在捕捉太阳的光子。 嵌入聚合物中的催化剂材料有助于利用这些吸收的光子通过一个称为“光子”的过程将水分子分解为氢气和氧气。 这项研究将制造和测试这些材料从水中产生氢气的性能。参与该项目的学生将在可再生能源和纳米技术的接口进行培训。 该项目还将为犹他州自然历史博物馆开发制氢示范，向公众展示可再生能源研究。本研究的目标是合成新型有机聚合物纳米纤维基光催化材料，并表征其将水分解为氢气的性能。 这些纳米纤维含有聚合物和金属助催化剂纳米颗粒，是多功能的，结合了可调能带结构，可见光谱响应和大表面积的特性。 在研究计划中，有机聚合物纳米纤维将由含有对宽范围可见光响应的供体-受体部分的构建块分子合成。供体-受体材料界面也将被设计用于在照射时增加电荷分离，以及用于将光生电子有效传输到将质子转化为氢的助催化剂位点。该界面也将被设计为最大化光生电子的摄入，同时防止它们与阳离子自由基复合。 时间分辨电子自旋共振测量将表征界面电子清除如何取决于聚合物和助催化剂中的粒度和能级排列。 合成的纳米纤维光催化剂的产氢活性将与量子效率、转换数和对照射波长的依赖性相关。 作为教育活动的一部分，将通过犹他州科学中心和国家科学基金会赞助的犹他州纳米研究所的纳米日提供基于太阳能燃料和太阳能光伏主题的研讨会。