Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production
Although there are promising environmental and energy characteristics for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen, two main drawbacks must be overcome before the large- scale deployment of the technology becomes a reality, (i) the low efficiency reported by state of the art photocatalysts and, (ii...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2020-09-01
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| Series: | Membranes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/10/9/218 |
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| author | Juan Corredor Eduardo Perez-Peña Maria J. Rivero Inmaculada Ortiz |
| author_facet | Juan Corredor Eduardo Perez-Peña Maria J. Rivero Inmaculada Ortiz |
| author_sort | Juan Corredor |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Although there are promising environmental and energy characteristics for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen, two main drawbacks must be overcome before the large- scale deployment of the technology becomes a reality, (i) the low efficiency reported by state of the art photocatalysts and, (ii) the short life time and difficult recovery of the photocatalyst, issues that need research and development for new high performance catalysts. In this work 2% rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> composite photocatalysts were supported over Nafion membranes and the performance of the photocatalytic membrane was tested for hydrogen production from a 20% vol. methanol solution. Immobilization of the composite on Nafion membranes followed three different simple methods which preserve the photocatalyst structure: solvent-casting (SC), spraying (SP), and dip-coating (DP). The photocatalyst was included in the matrix membrane using the SC method, while it was located on the membrane surface in the SP and DP membranes showing less mass transfer limitations. The performance of the synthesized photocatalytic membranes for hydrogen production under UVA light irradiation was compared. Leaching of the catalytic membranes was tested by measuring the turbidity of the solution. With respect to catalyst leaching, both the SC and SP membranes provided very good results, the leaching being lower with the SC membrane. The best results in terms of initial hydrogen production rate (HPR) were obtained with the SP and DP membrane. The SP was selected as the most suitable method for photocatalytic hydrogen production due to the high HPR and the negligible photocatalyst leaching. Moreover, the stability of this membrane was studied for longer operation times. This work helps to improve the knowledge on the application of photocatalytic membranes for hydrogen production and contributes in facilitating the large-scale application of this process. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:39:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2e4111d89a6e4dad89035a92a09acdf5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0375 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:39:32Z |
| publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Membranes |
| spelling | doaj.art-2e4111d89a6e4dad89035a92a09acdf52023-11-20T12:08:15ZengMDPI AGMembranes2077-03752020-09-0110921810.3390/membranes10090218Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen ProductionJuan Corredor0Eduardo Perez-Peña1Maria J. Rivero2Inmaculada Ortiz3Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, ETSIIT, University of Cantabria, Avda. de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, SpainDepartment of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, ETSIIT, University of Cantabria, Avda. de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, SpainDepartment of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, ETSIIT, University of Cantabria, Avda. de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, SpainDepartment of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, ETSIIT, University of Cantabria, Avda. de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, SpainAlthough there are promising environmental and energy characteristics for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen, two main drawbacks must be overcome before the large- scale deployment of the technology becomes a reality, (i) the low efficiency reported by state of the art photocatalysts and, (ii) the short life time and difficult recovery of the photocatalyst, issues that need research and development for new high performance catalysts. In this work 2% rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> composite photocatalysts were supported over Nafion membranes and the performance of the photocatalytic membrane was tested for hydrogen production from a 20% vol. methanol solution. Immobilization of the composite on Nafion membranes followed three different simple methods which preserve the photocatalyst structure: solvent-casting (SC), spraying (SP), and dip-coating (DP). The photocatalyst was included in the matrix membrane using the SC method, while it was located on the membrane surface in the SP and DP membranes showing less mass transfer limitations. The performance of the synthesized photocatalytic membranes for hydrogen production under UVA light irradiation was compared. Leaching of the catalytic membranes was tested by measuring the turbidity of the solution. With respect to catalyst leaching, both the SC and SP membranes provided very good results, the leaching being lower with the SC membrane. The best results in terms of initial hydrogen production rate (HPR) were obtained with the SP and DP membrane. The SP was selected as the most suitable method for photocatalytic hydrogen production due to the high HPR and the negligible photocatalyst leaching. Moreover, the stability of this membrane was studied for longer operation times. This work helps to improve the knowledge on the application of photocatalytic membranes for hydrogen production and contributes in facilitating the large-scale application of this process.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/10/9/218rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub>Nafionhydrogen productionphotocatalysisphotocatalytic membrane |
| spellingShingle | Juan Corredor Eduardo Perez-Peña Maria J. Rivero Inmaculada Ortiz Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production Membranes rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Nafion hydrogen production photocatalysis photocatalytic membrane |
| title | Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production |
| title_full | Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production |
| title_fullStr | Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production |
| title_full_unstemmed | Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production |
| title_short | Performance of rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Photocatalytic Membranes for Hydrogen Production |
| title_sort | performance of rgo tio sub 2 sub photocatalytic membranes for hydrogen production |
| topic | rGO/TiO<sub>2</sub> Nafion hydrogen production photocatalysis photocatalytic membrane |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/10/9/218 |
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