Up-scaling solar hydrogen production

扩大太阳能制氢规模

• 批准号: EP/W033216/1
• 负责人: Anna Hankin
• 金额: $ 32.2万
• 依托单位: Imperial College London
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2023 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=EP%2FW033216%2F1
• 关键词: Up; scaling; solar; hydrogen; production

'Solar fuels' are synthetic, storable, high energy density chemicals, produced using sunlight as the sole energy source. Solar fuels include hydrogen (termed "golden hydrogen"), which is generated by solar-driven water reduction, and various carbon-based fuels produced through the reduction of carbon dioxide. Fuels synthesised in this way can contribute towards reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions. The projected increase in global power demand necessitates urgent decarbonisation of power sources and fuels to limit the release of CO2 into the atmosphere. One major pathway to achieving this goal is to harness and utilise renewable energies. These, however, are intermittent and so require management, for example via energy storage in chemical bonds.Photoelectrochemical reactors present a potential technological solution for producing solar fuels at scale. Such reactors combine - in a single device - the functions of photovoltaic (PV) panels and electrolysers; the former convert solar energy to electrical energy, while the latter convert electrical energy to chemical energy. In photoelectrochemical reactors, photoabsorbing components are immersed in liquid media. This approach was conceived to lower the capital cost of solar fuel production compared with commercially available PV + electrolyser systems. The overarching aim of this research is to answer the question 'What might an industrial scale photoelectrochemical reactor system ultimately look like?'. Development of up-scaled reactors is a multidisciplinary challenge, involving material science, (photo)electrochemistry, electrochemical engineering and optics, supplemented by numerical modelling of the complete system to guide its design and optimisation. These many considerations need to be addressed simultaneously. By answering some of these critical questions and developing large-scale prototype reactors, this project will accelerate the development of sustainable hydrogen production using photoelectrochemical devices and bring us closer to the decarbonisation of our energy systems that we urgently need.

“太阳能燃料”是合成的，可存储的高能密度化学物质，该化学物质是用阳光作为唯一能源来产生的。太阳能燃料包括氢（称为“金氢”），该氢是由太阳能驱动的还原产生的，以及通过还原二氧化碳产生的各种碳基燃料。以这种方式合成的燃料可以有助于达到净零温室气体排放。预计，全球电力需求的增加需要电源和燃料的紧急脱碳，以限制二氧化碳释放到大气中。实现这一目标的一个主要途径是利用和利用可再生能源。但是，这些是间歇性的，因此需要管理，例如通过化学键中的能量存储。PhotoelectroctroectrogicalReactor提供了一种潜在的技术解决方案，用于生产大规模生产太阳能燃料。这种反应器在单个设备中组合 - 光伏（PV）面板和电解器的功能；前者将太阳能转换为电能，而后者将电能转换为化学能。在光电化学反应器中，光吸收成分浸入液体培养基中。与市售的PV + ElectrolySer系统相比，这种方法是为了降低太阳能燃料生产的资本成本。这项研究的总体目的是回答一个问题：“工业规模的光电化学反应堆系统最终会是什么样？”。提高反应堆的开发是一个多学科的挑战，涉及材料科学，（照片）电化学，电化学工程和光学，并补充了完整系统的数值建模，以指导其设计和优化。这些许多考虑需要同时解决。通过回答这些关键问题中的一些并开发大型原型反应堆，该项目将使用光电化学设备加速可持续氢生产的开发，并使我们更接近迫切需要的能源系统的脱碳。