Hydrogen fuel

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Hydrogen fuel is an zero-emission fuel which uses electrochemical cells, or combustion in internal engines, to power vehicles and electric devices. It is also used in the propulsion of spacecraft and can potentially be mass produced and commercialized for passenger vehicles and aircraft.

Contents
[hide]

1 Chemistry 2 Manufacturing 3 Energy 4 Uses 5 See also 6 References 7 External links 8 Bibliography

edit]Chemistry

Hydrogen is the first element on the periodic table, making it the lightest element on earth. It is also the most abundant element on the planet, although not usually found in its pure form, H2. This is due to the fact that it is so light, it rises into the atmosphere.[1] In a flame of pure hydrogen gas, burning in air, the hydrogen (H2) reacts with oxygen (O2) to form water (H2O) and releases heat. This heat is what will be used as a fuel; therefore hydrogen is an energy carrier, not an energy source.[2] This reaction does not produce other chemical by-products, except for a small amount ofnitrogen oxides. Hence a key feature of hydrogen as a fuel is that it is relatively non-polluting (since water is not a pollutant). Pure hydrogen does not occur naturally; it takes energy to manufacture it.

edit]Manufacturing

Main article: Hydrogen production Because pure hydrogen does not occur naturally, it takes energy to manufacture it. There are different ways to manufacture it, such as, electrolysis and steam-methane reforming process. In electrolysis, electricity is run through water to separate the hydrogen and oxygen atoms. This method can be used by using wind, solar, geothermal, hydro, fossil fuels, biomass, and many other resources.[2] The more natural methods of making electricity (wind, solar, hydro, geothermal, biomass), rather than fossil fuels, would be better used as to continue the environment-friendly process of the fuel. Obtaining hydrogen from this

process is being studied as a viable way to produce it domestically at a low cost. Steam-methane reforming process extracts the hydrogen from methane. However, this reaction causes a side production of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide which are greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming.
[3]

Even so,

the current leading technology for producing hydrogen in large quantities is steam reforming of methane gas (CH4). Other methods are discussed in the Hydrogen Production article. [4]

edit]Energy

Once manufactured, hydrogen is an energy carrier (i.e. a store for energy first generated by other means). The energy is eventually delivered as heat when the hydrogen is burned. The heat in a hydrogen flame is a radiant emission from the newly formed water molecules. The water molecules are in an excited state on initial formation and then transition to a ground state; the transition unleashing thermal radiation. When burning in air, the temperature is roughly 2000C.

edit]Uses

Main article: Hydrogen economy Hydrogen fuel can provide motive power for cars, boats and airplanes, portable fuel cell applications or stationary fuel cell applications, which can power an electric motor. With regard to safety from unwanted explosions, hydrogen fuel in automotive vehicles is at least as safe as gasoline.[5]

edit]See also

HCNG Hydrogen safety Hydrogen storage Hydrogen compressor Oxyhydrogen flame Hydrogen technologies Hydrogen vehicle Fuel cell vehicle

edit]References
1. ^ Altork, L.N. & Busby, J. R. (2010 Oct). Hydrogen fuel cells: part of the solution. Technology & Engineering Teacher, 70(2), 22-27. 2. ^
a b

Florida Solar Energy Center. (n.d.). Hydrogen Basics. Retrieved

from:http://www.fsec.ucf.edu/en/consumer/hydrogen/basics/index.htm

3.

^ Altork, L.N. & Busby, J. R. (2010 Oct). Hydrogen fuel cells: part of the solution. Technology & Engineering Teacher, 70(2), 22-27.

4.

^ U.S. Department of Energy. (2007 Feb). Potential for hydrogen production from key renewable resources in the Unites States. (Technical Report NREL/TP-640-41134). National Renewable Energy Laboratory Golden, CO: Milbrandt, A. & Mann, M. Retrieved from:http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/pdfs/41134.pdf

5.

^ U.S. Energy Information Administration. (n.d). Energy sources: hydrogen. Retrieved from:http://www.eia.gov/kids/energy.cfm?page=hydrogen_homebasics-k.cfm

edit]External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hydrogen Fuel

Hydrogen Fuel

edit]Bibliography

McCarthy, John. [www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/progress/hydrogen.html "Hydrogen"].

Energy Information Administration. "Hydrogen explained to a juvenile audience". EIA Official Energy Statistics from the U.S. Government.

Milbrandt, A.. [afdc.energy.gov/afdc/pdfs/41134.pdf "Hydrogen Production from Key Renewable Resources in the United States"]. U.S. Department of Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Retrieved March 24, 2011.

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A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent.
[1]

Hydrogen is the most common

fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used. Fuel cells are different from batteries in that they require a constant source of fuel and oxygen to run, but they can produce electricity continually for as long as these inputs are supplied. Welsh Physicist William Grove developed the first crude fuel cells in 1839. The first commercial use of fuel cells was in NASA space programs to generate power for probes, satellites and space capsules. Since then, fuel cells have been used in many other applications. Fuel cells are used for primary and backup power for commercial, industrial and residential buildings and in remote or inaccessible areas. They are used to power fuel cell vehicles, including automobiles, buses, forklifts, airplanes, boats, motorcycles and submarines. There are many types of fuel cells, but they all consist of an anode (negative side), a cathode (positive side) and an electrolyte that allows charges to move between the two sides of the fuel cell. Electrons are drawn from the anode to the cathode through an external circuit, producing direct current electricity. As the main difference among fuel cell types is the electrolyte, fuel cells are classified by the type of electrolyte they use. Fuel cells come in a variety of sizes. Individual fuel cells produce relatively small electrical potentials, about 0.7 volts, so cells are "stacked", or placed in series, to increase the voltage and meet an applications requirements.
[2]

In addition to electricity, fuel cells produce water, heat and,

depending on the fuel source, very small amounts of nitrogen dioxide and other emissions. The energy efficiency of a fuel cell is generally between 40-60%, or up to 85% efficient if waste heat is captured for use. Photocatalytic water splitting is the term for the production of hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) from water by directly utilizing the energy of light. Hydrogen fuel production has gained increased attention as oil and other nonrenewable fuels become increasingly depleted and expensive. Methods such as photocatalytic water splitting are being investigated to produce hydrogen fuel, which burns cleanly and can be used in a hydrogen fuel cell. Water splitting holds particular interest since it utilizes water, an inexpensive renewable resource. Photocatalytic water splitting has the simplicity of using a powder in solution and sunlight to produce H2 and O2 from water and can provide a clean, renewable energy, without producing greenhouse gases or having many adverse effects on the atmosphere. Theoretically, only solar energy (photons), water, and a catalyst are needed.

When H2O is split into O2 and H2, the stoichiometric ratio of its byproducts are 2:1: The process of water-splitting is a highly endothermic process (H > 0). Water splitting occurs naturally in photosynthesis when photon energy is absorbed and converted into the chemical energy through a complex biological pathway. However, production of hydrogen from water requires large amounts of input energy, making it incapable with existing energy generation. For this reason, most commercially produced hydrogen gas is produced from natural gas. There are several strict requirements for a photocatalyst to be useful for water splitting. The minimum potential difference (voltage) needed to split water is 1.23ev at 0 pH.[citation needed] Since the minimum band gap for successful water splitting at pH=0 is 1.23 eV, corresponding to light of 1008 nm, the electrochemical requirements can theoretically reach down into infrared light, albeit with negligible catalytic activity.[citation needed] These values are true only for a completely reversible reaction at standard temperature and pressure (1 bar and 25 degrees Celsius). Theoretically, infrared light has enough energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen; however, this reaction is kinetically very slow because the wavelength is greater than 380 nm. The potential must be less than 3.0eV to make efficient use of the energy present across the full spectrum of sunlight. Water splitting can transfer charges, but not be able to avoid corrosion for long term stability. Defects within crystalline photocatalysts can act as recombination sites, ultimately lowering efficiency. Materials used in photocatalytic water splitting fulfill the band requirements outlined previously and typically have dopants and/or co-catalysts added to optimize their performance. A samplesemiconductor with the proper band structure is TiO2. However, due to the relatively positive conduction band of TiO2, there is little driving force for H2 production, so TiO2 is typically used with a co-catalyst such as Pt to increase the rate of H2 production. It is routine to add co-catalysts to spur H2 evolution in most photocatalysts due to the conduction band placement.

Most semiconductors with suitable band structures to split water absorb mostly UV light; in order to absorb visible light, it is necessary to narrow the band gap. Since the conduction band is fairly close to the reference potential for H2 formation, it is preferable to alter the valence band to move it closer to the potential for O2 formation, since there is a greater natural overpotential.[1] Photocatalysts can suffer from catalyst decay and recombination under operating conditions. Catalyst decay becomes a problem when using a sulfide-based photocatalyst such as CdS, as thesulfide in the catalyst is oxidized to elemental sulfur at the same potentials used to split water. Thus, sulfide-based photocatalysts are not viable without sacrificial reagents such as sodium sulfideto replenish any sulfur lost, which effectively changes the main reaction to one of hydrogen evolution as opposed to water splitting. Recombination of the electron-hole pairs needed for photocatalysis can occur with any catalyst and is dependent on the defects and surface area of the catalyst; thus, a high degree of crystallinity is required to avoid recombination at the defects.[1] The conversion of solar energy to hydrogen by means of photocatalysis is one of the most interesting ways to achieve clean and renewable energy systems. However if this process is assisted by photocatalysts suspended directly in water instead of using a photovoltaic and electrolytic system the reaction is in just one step, and can therefore be more efficient.[2][3]
[edit]Method

of evaluation

Photocatalysts must conform to several key principles in order to be considered effective at water splitting. A key principle is that H2 and O2 evolution should occur in a stoichiometric 2:1 ratio; significant deviation could be due to a flaw in the experimental setup and/or a side reaction, both of which do not indicate a reliable photocatalyst for water splitting. The prime measure of photocatalyst effectiveness is quantum yield (QY), which is: QY (%) = (Number of reacted electrons) / (Number of incident photons) 100%[1]

This quantity is a reliable determination of how effective a photocatalyst is; however, it can be misleading due to varying experimental conditions. To assist in comparison, the rate of gas evolution can also be used; this method is more problematic on its own because it is not normalized, but it can be useful for a rough comparison and is consistently reported in the literature. Overall, the best photocatalyst has a high quantum yield and gives a high rate of gas evolution. The other important factor for a photocatalyst is the range of light absorbed; though UV-based photocatalysts will perform better per photon than visible light-based photocatalysts due to the higher photon energy, far more visible light reaches the Earth's surface than UV light. Thus, a less efficient photocatalyst that absorbs visible light may ultimately be more useful than a more efficient photocatalyst absorbing solely light with smaller wavelengths.
[edit]Photocatalyst [edit]NaTaO3:La

systems

NaTaO3:La yields the highest water splitting rate of photocatalysts without using sacrificial reagents.[1] This UVbased photocatalyst was shown to be highly effective with water splitting rates of 9.7 mmol/h and a quantum yield of 56%. The nanostep structure of the material promotes water splitting as edges functioned as H2 production sites and the grooves functioned as O2 production sites. Addition of NiO particles as cocatalysts assisted in H2 production; this step was done by using an impregnation method with an aqueous solution of Ni(NO3)26H2O and evaporating the solution in the presence of the photocatalyst. NaTaO3 has a conduction band higher than that of NiO, so photogenerated electrons are more easily transferred to the conduction band of NiO for H2evolution.[4]
[edit]K3Ta3B2O12

K3Ta3B2O12, another catalyst activated by solely UV light and above, does not have the performance or quantum yield of NaTaO3:La. However, it does have the ability to split water without the assistance of cocatalysts and gives a quantum yield of 6.5% along with a water splitting rate of 1.21 mmol/h. This

ability is due to the pillared structure of the photocatalyst, which involves TaO6pillars connected by BO3 triangle units. Loading with NiO did not assist the photocatalyst due to the highly active H2 evolution sites.[5]
[edit](Ga.82Zn.18)(N.82O.18)

(Ga.82Zn.18)(N.82O.18) has the highest quantum yield in visible light for visible light-based photocatalysts that do not utilize sacrificial reagents as of October 2008.[1] The photocatalyst gives a quantum yield of 5.9% along with a water splitting rate of 0.4 mmol/h. Tuning the catalyst was done by increasing calcination temperatures for the final step in synthesizing the catalyst. Temperatures up to 600 C helped to reduce the number of defects, though temperatures above 700 C destroyed the local structure around zinc atoms and was thus undesirable. The treatment ultimately reduced the amount of surface Zn and O defects, which normally function as recombination sites, thus limiting photocatalytic activity. The catalyst was then loaded with Rh2-yCryO3 at a rate of 2.5 wt % Rh and 2 wt% Cr to yield the best performance.[6]
[edit]Pt/TiO2

TiO2 is the most effective photocatalyst, as it yields both a high quantum number and a high rate of H2 gas evolution. For example, Pt/TiO2 (anatase phase) is a catalyst used in water splitting. These photocatalysts combine with a thin NaOH aqueous layer to make a solution that can split water into H2 and O2. TiO2 absorbs only ultraviolet light due to its large band gap(>3.0ev); however, it outperforms most visible light photocatalysts because it does not photocorrode as easily. Most ceramic materials have large band gaps and thus have stronger covalent bonds than other semiconductors with lower band gaps.
[edit]Cobalt

based systems

Photocatalysts based on cobalt have been reported.[7] Members are tris(bipyridine) cobalt(II), compounds of cobalt ligated to certain cyclic polyamines, and certain cobaloximes.
[edit]