Experimental investigation and analysis of a new photoelectrochemical reactor for hydrogen production

Abstract

In this research paper, an experimental investigation of photoactive material titanium dioxide (TiO2) coated on 180 cm(2) 316 stainless steel anode is undertaken to study the photoresponse on photoelectrochemical (PEG) hydrogen production. The TiO2 nanoparticles are first prepared via sol-gel method. A large surface 316 stainless steel anode is coated with TiO2 nanoparticles by a dip coating apparatus at a withdraw rate of 2.5 mm/s. The nanoparticles are carried on the stainless steel substrate by two-step annealing procedure. The potentiostatic studies confirm the photoactivity of TiO2 nanoparticles in a photoelectrochemical reactor when exposed to solar ultraviolet (UV) light. The photon to current efficiency measurements carried out on the PEC reactor with TiO2 coated large surface stainless steel as photoanode demonstrate a significant increase of photoresponse in UV light compared to the uncoated stainless steel prepared under similar conditions. Upon illumination at a power density of 600 W/m(2) , the hydrogen production is observed in TiO2 coated stainless steel substrate at a measured rate of 51 ml/h while no illumination conditions show a production rate of 42 ml/h. In comparative assessments, the TiO2 coated substrate shows an increase in photocurrent of 10 mA with an energy efficiency of 1.32% and exergy efficiency of 3.42% at an applied potential of 1.6 V. The present results show a great potential for titanium nanoparticles semiconductor metal oxide in photoelectrochemical hydrogen production application. (C) 2018 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.