A standard electrolyzer test cell design for evaluating catalysts and cell components for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis

Faqeeh, A. H. and Symes, M. D. (2023) A standard electrolyzer test cell design for evaluating catalysts and cell components for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis. Electrochimica Acta, 444, 142030. (doi: 10.1016/j.electacta.2023.142030)

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Abstract

Anion exchange membrane water electrolysis technology is an environmentally friendly method for hydrogen production without carbon dioxide emissions. The development of this technology is hindered by the sluggish rates of the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions, demanding the rational design of electrocatalysts for these processes. Although numerous hydrogen and oxygen evolution electrocatalysts are reported in the literature, there is currently no standard set of conditions or cell design under which they can be tested; variance in testing conditions and water electrolyzer components from one study to another therefore hampers a full and coherent comparison of novel electrocatalysts for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis. Herein, a standard water electrolyzer test cell was designed and optimized, such that this test cell can be adopted as a universal framework for evaluating novel electrocatalysts (and indeed other cell components) for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis. The performance of this water electrolyzer was evaluated using a commercial Pt/C hydrogen evolution reaction electrocatalyst, with an optimized cell found to deliver current densities of 1.40 A cm–2 and 2.74 A cm–2 at cell voltages of 2.0 V and at 60°C using Fumasep FAA-3-50 and Sustainion® X37-50 membranes, respectively. Guidance for assembling and operating the water electrolyzer is provided, along with computer-aided design drawings of the electrolyzer and its components to allow others to construct their own identical cells for benchmarking catalysts and other cell components for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Symes, Professor Mark and Faqeeh, Abdulhai
Creator Roles:
Faqeeh, A. H.Conceptualization, Methodology, Data curation, Investigation
Symes, M. D.Conceptualization, Supervision, Writing – review and editing
Authors: Faqeeh, A. H., and Symes, M. D.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Chemistry
Journal Name:Electrochimica Acta
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:0013-4686
ISSN (Online):1873-3859
Published Online:11 February 2023
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2023 The Authors
First Published:First published in Electrochimica Acta 444: 142030
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License
Data DOI:10.5525/gla.researchdata.1356

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
316623Decoupled Electrolysis for the Production of Zero-Carbon HydrogenMark SymesEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/W033135/1Chemistry
312636Driving energetically uphill processes using metal-ligand coordination complexes - RenewalMark SymesThe Royal Society (ROYSOC)URF\R\211007Chemistry