(358g) Production of Hydrogen By Water Splitting Using a Microwave-Assisted Reactor

Hydrogen has attracted considerable attention as a clean energy source due to the fact that the energy produced by the unit weight of hydrogen is considerably high. On the other hand, production of hydrogen is one of the most challenging issues in the world due to its high energy demand. Nowadays, the production of hydrogen from water is becoming very popular, since the main component of water is hydrogen which is easily accessible on the earth. A novel method to produce hydrogen is using microwave radiation due to low energy consumption [1]. During the microwave heating process, the microwave absorbent material interacts with the microwave irradiation causing a temperature increase in the sample. When microwave radiation hits the Activated Carbon the temperature rise happens, and water molecules can be broken down to its components on the high-temperature surface.

In this study, a fixed and fluidized bed quartz reactors containing activated carbon as the absorbent is utilized to dissociate water into hydrogen and oxygen under mono-mode microwave conditions. Upon reaching a specific temperature, water is introduced into the reactor from the bottom, where it decomposes upon contact with the preheated particles. Additionally, nitrogen is injected into the reactor to transport the small amount of hydrogen generated. Hydrogen levels within the system are monitored using a hydrogen sensor. The study investigates the effects of temperature variations, water flow rates, and different absorbents on hydrogen production. Results indicate that hydrogen production remains stable at 650°C, with inferior yields observed at lower temperatures compared to high temperature methods for hydrogen production.

Reference

1. Horikoshi, S., et al., Low-temperature microwave-driven thermochemical generation of hydrogen from steam reforming of alcohols over magnetite. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 2022. 47(56): p. 23520-23529.