Up-scaling solar hydrogen production

“太阳能燃料”是一种合成的、可储存的、高能量密度的化学物质，利用阳光作为唯一的能源来生产。太阳能燃料包括氢（被称为“金氢”），它是由太阳能驱动的水还原产生的，以及通过减少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为实现温室气体净零排放做出贡献。预计全球电力需求的增长，迫切需要对能源和燃料进行脱碳处理，以限制向大气中排放二氧化碳。实现这一目标的一个主要途径是利用可再生能源。然而，这些是间歇性的，因此需要管理，例如通过化学键储存能量。光电化学反应器为大规模生产太阳能燃料提供了一种潜在的技术解决方案。这种反应器在一个设备中结合了光伏（PV）面板和电解槽的功能；前者将太阳能转化为电能，后者将电能转化为化学能。在光电化学反应器中，光吸收元件浸泡在液体介质中。与商业上可用的PV +电解槽系统相比，这种方法的设想是降低太阳能燃料生产的资本成本。这项研究的首要目标是回答这个问题：“工业规模的光电化学反应器系统最终会是什么样子？”大规模反应器的开发是一项多学科挑战，涉及材料科学，（光）电化学，电化学工程和光学，并辅以完整系统的数值建模来指导其设计和优化。这许多考虑需要同时加以处理。通过回答这些关键问题和开发大型原型反应堆，该项目将加速利用光电化学装置可持续制氢的发展，并使我们更接近我们迫切需要的能源系统的脱碳。

'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.