Thermochemical equipment design for a lab-scale demonstration of hydrogen production with a copper-chlorine cycle

石油储量枯竭和二氧化碳排放导致的全球变暖，推动了最近全球对高油价和气候变化的紧迫性。社会对石油的依赖在环境和经济上都是不可持续的。它威胁到地缘政治稳定，对许多国家来说，这是一个最严重的国家安全问题。在这个国家，加拿大人希望把一个干净的环境传给下一代。他们期待能够缓解气候变化、雾霾、酸雨和污染的技术创新。在工作场所，他们希望在制造业、汽车和航空航天等易受高油价影响的行业保持竞争力。与碳氢化合物不同，氢是一种可持续的清洁能源载体。人们普遍认为它是世界下一代燃料。安大略省已经开始向氢燃料经济发展。例如，位于多伦多展览广场的HyLYZER加气站是多伦多氢村的一部分。该站每天使用风能生产约65公斤氢气，可为约20辆汽车提供氢气。不幸的是，风力发电无法持续大规模生产全球氢经济所需的氢气。此外，作为一种排放温室气体的碳基技术，现有的主要工艺（蒸汽-甲烷重整；SMR）也不适合。一种不排放温室气体的极有前途的替代方法是利用核热对水进行热化学分解。本研究的重点是铜-氯（Cu-Cl）循环制氢。它在循环内开发了氧气和电积工艺的创新设计。该项目包括安大略省理工大学（UOIT）与加拿大原子能有限公司（AECL）合作进行的几名研究生和研究。

Recent worldwide urgency regarding high oil prices and climate change has been driven by depleting oil reserves and global warming, due to carbon dioxide emissions. Society's dependence on petroleum is unsustainable, both environmentally and economically. It threatens geopolitical stability and for many countries, it is a most serious issue of national security. In this country, Canadians wish to pass a clean environment to the next generations. They look forward to technological innovation that can mitigate climate change, smog, acid rain and pollution. At the workplace, they wish to stay competitive in industries vulnerable to high oil prices, such as the manufacturing, automotive and aerospace sectors. Unlike hydrocarbons, hydrogen is a sustainable and clean energy carrier. It is widely believed to be the world's next-generation fuel. Ontario has already begun to move towards a hydrogen-fueled economy. For example, the HyLYZER refueling station at Exhibition Place in Toronto is part of Toronto's Hydrogen Village. The station produces about 65 kg of hydrogen per day using wind energy, which can supply hydrogen for about 20 vehicles. Unfortunately, wind power is incapable of producing consistent large-scale capacities of hydrogen needed for a worldwide Hydrogen Economy. Furthermore, as a carbon-based technology that emits greenhouse gases, the predominant existing process (steam-methane reforming; SMR) is also unsuitable. A highly promising alternative without greenhouse gas emissions uses nuclear heat for thermochemical decomposition of water. This research focuses on a copper-chlorine (Cu-Cl) cycle for hydrogen production. It develops innovative designs for oxygen and electrowinning processes within the cycle. The project includes several graduate students and research conducted at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT), in collaboration with Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL).