Steam electrolysis
AssigneeUniversity Court of the University of St Andrews
InventorsJohn Thomas Sirr Irvine, Angela Kruth, Cristian Daniel Savaniu, Shanwen Tao
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a method of producing hydrogen comprising: contacting steam 20 with a proton conducting membrane 7 supported on a porous redox stable substrate 8, through said substrate 8. The membrane 7 is non-permeable to molecular gas and to oxide ions. A DC voltage is applied across an anode 15 coupled to the substrate side of the membrane and a cathode 9,11 coupled to its other side so as to dissociate at least part of the steam 20, into protonic hydrogen and oxygen at said anode 15. The protonic hydrogen passes through the membrane and forms molecular hydrogen 23 at the cathode 9, 11.
Claims18
A method of producing hydrogen comprising:
- providing a steam feed stream at one side of a porous redox stable substrate, contacting said steam feed stream with a proton conducting membrane supported on the other side of said porous redox stable substrate, through said substrate, said membrane being substantially non-permeable to molecular gas and to oxide ions, applying a DC voltage across an anode coupled to the substrate side of said membrane and a cathode coupled to the other side of said membrane so as to dissociate at least part of said steam feed stream therebetween, into protonic hydrogen and oxygen at said anode, allowing said protonic hydrogen to pass through said membrane and form molecular hydrogen at said cathode, and collecting said molecular hydrogen, wherein the membrane comprises a material prepared with the use of a sintering aid comprising at least one of Zn doped oxide, Al2O3, Bi2O3 and/or an oxide of a first row transition element.
A steam electrolyser apparatus for producing hydrogen, comprising:
- a dense proton-conducting membrane substantially non-porous to molecular gas, said membrane being supported on a gas permeable, chemically and mechanically stable, electronically conducting substrate, said membrane being coupled:
- at the substrate-supported side to an anode for connection to a positive voltage, and to a steam inlet and oxygen outlet for feeding a steam feed stream into said substrate and exhausting oxygen gas released therefrom;
- and at its other side to a cathode for connection to a negative voltage and a hydrogen gas outlet for exhaustion of hydrogen gas released at said cathode, wherein the membrane comprises a material prepared with the use of a sintering aid comprising at least one of Zn doped oxide, Al2O3, Bi2O3 and/or an oxide of a first row transition element.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.