Alkaline water electrolysis

Short description: Type of electrolyzer

Alkaline water electrolysis

Typical Materials
Type of Electrolysis:| Alkaline Water Electrolysis
Style of membrane/diaphragm| NiO[1]/Asbestos/polysulfone matrix and ZrO2 (Zirfon)/polyphenil sulfide[2][3]
Bipolar/separator plate material| Stainless steel
Catalyst material on the anode| Ni/Co/Fe
Catalyst material on the cathode| Ni/C-Pt
Anode PTL material| Ti/Ni/zirconium
Cathode PTL material| Stainless steel mesh
State-of-the-art Operating Ranges
Cell temperature| 60-80 °C[4]
Stack pressure| <30 bar[4]
Current density| 0.2-0.4 A/cm2[4][5]
Cell voltage| 1.8-2.40 V[4][5]
Power density| to 1.0 W/cm2[4]
Part-load range| 20-40%[4]
Specific energy consumption stack| 4.2-5.9 kWh/Nm3[4]
Specific energy consumption system| 4.5-7.0 kWh/Nm3[4]
Cell voltage efficiency| 62–82% (HHV)[4]
System hydrogen production rate| <760 Nm3/h[4]
Lifetime stack| <90,000 h[4]
Acceptable degradation rate| <3 μV/h[4]
System lifetime| 20-30 years[4]

Alkaline water electrolysis is a type of electrolysis that is characterized by having two electrodes operating in a liquid alkaline electrolyte. Commonly, a solution of potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at 25-40 wt% is used.[6] These electrodes are separated by a diaphragm, separating the product gases and transporting the hydroxide ions (OH−) from one electrode to the other.[4][7] A recent comparison showed that state-of-the-art nickel based water electrolysers with alkaline electrolytes lead to competitive or even better efficiencies than acidic polymer electrolyte membrane water electrolysis with platinum group metal based electrocatalysts.[8]

The technology has a long history in the chemical industry. The first large-scale demand for hydrogen emerged in late 19th century for lighter-than-air aircraft, and before the advent of steam reforming in the 1930s, the technique was competitive.[citation needed]

Hydrogen-based technologies have evolved significantly since the initial discovery of hydrogen and its early application as a buoyant gas approximately 250 years ago. In 1804, the Swiss inventor Francois Isaac de Rivaz secured a patent for the inaugural hydrogen-powered vehicle. This prototype, equipped with a four-wheel design, utilised an internal combustion engine (ICE) fuelled by a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen gases. The hydrogen fuel was stored in a balloon, and ignition was achieved through an electrical starter known as a Volta starter. The combustion process propelled the piston within the cylinder, which, upon descending, activated a wheel through a ratchet mechanism. This invention could be viewed as an early embodiment of a system comprising hydrogen storage, conduits, valves, and a conversion device.[9]

Approximately four decades after the military scientist Ritter developed the first electrolyser, the chemists Schoenbein and Sir Grove independently identified and showcased the fuel cell concept. This technology operates in reverse to electrolysis around the year 1839. This discovery marked a significant milestone in the field of hydrogen technology, demonstrating the potential for hydrogen as a source of clean energy.[9]

## Contents

* 1 Structure and materials
* 2 Electrochemistry
* 2.1 Anode reaction
* 2.2 Cathode reaction
* 3 Advantages compared to PEM water electrolysis
* 4 Disadvantage
* 5 See also
* 6 References

## Structure and materials

Scheme of alkaline water electrolyzers. The catalysts are added to the anode and cathode to reduce the overpotential.[10]

The electrodes are typically separated by a thin porous foil, commonly referred to as diaphragm or separator. The diaphragm is non-conductive to electrons, thus avoiding electrical shorts between the electrodes while allowing small distances between the electrodes. The ionic conductivity is supplied by the aqueous alkaline solution, which penetrates in the pores of the diaphragm. Asbestos diaphragms have been used for a long time due to their effective gas separation, low cost, and high chemical stability; however, their use is restricted by the Rotterdam Convention.[11] The state-of-the-art diaphragm is Zirfon, a composite material of zirconia and Polysulfone.[12] The diaphragm further avoids the mixing of the produced hydrogen and oxygen at the cathode and anode,[13][14] respectively. The thickness of asbestos diaphragms ranges from 2 to 5 mm, while Zirfon diaphragms range from 0.2 to 0.5 mm.[11]

Typically, nickel based metals are used as the electrodes for alkaline water electrolysis.[15] Considering pure metals, Ni is the least active non-noble metal.[16] The high price of good noble metal electrocatalysts such as platinum group metals and their dissolution during the oxygen evolution[17] is a drawback. Ni is considered as more stable during the oxygen evolution,[18] but stainless steel has shown good stability and better catalytic activity than Ni at high temperatures during the Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER).[5]

High surface area Ni catalysts can be achieved by dealloying of nickel-zinc[5] or nickel-aluminium alloys in alkaline solution, commonly referred to as Raney nickel. In cell tests the best performing electrodes thus far reported consisted of plasma vacuum sprayed Ni alloys on Ni meshes[19] [20] and hot dip galvanized Ni meshes.[21] The latter approach might be interesting for large scale industrial manufacturing as it is cheap and easily scalable, but unfortunately, all the strategies show some degradation.[22]

## Electrochemistry

### Anode reaction

In alkaline media oxygen evolution reactions, multiple adsorbent species (O, OH, OOH, and OO–) and multiple steps are involved. Steps 4 and 5 often occur in a single step, but there is evidence that suggests steps 4 and 5 occur separately at pH 11 and higher.[23][24]

OH−->OH*+e− | (1)

|

OH*+OH−->O*+H2O+e− | (2)

|

O*+OH−->OOH*+e− | (3)

|

OOH*+OH−->OO−*+H2O | (4)

|

OO−*->O2(g)+e− | (5)

|

Overall anode reaction: 2OH−->H2O+12O2+2e−(E0=+0.40Vvs.SHE)

| (6)

|

Where the * indicate species adsorbed to the surface of the catalyst.

### Cathode reaction

The hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline conditions starts with water adsorption and dissociation in the Volmer step and either hydrogen desorption in the Tafel step or Heyrovsky step.

Volmer step: 2H2O+2e−->2H*+2OH− | (7)

|

Tafel step: 2H*->H2 | (8)

|

Heyrovsky step: H2O+H*+e−->H2+OH−

| (9)

|

Overall cathode reaction: 2H2O+2e−->H2+2OH−(E0=−0.83Vvs.SHE)

| (10)

|

## Advantages compared to PEM water electrolysis

In comparison to Proton exchange membrane electrolysis, the advantages of alkaline water electrolysis are mainly:[25]

1. Has a longer track record of industrial use, proven reliability, and lower initial costs, making it a more mature option for large-scale hydrogen production.
2. Higher durability due to an exchangeable electrolyte and lower dissolution of anodic catalyst.
3. Unlike PEM electrolysis, alkaline electrolysis does not require expensive or scarce precious metals like platinum or iridium for the electrodes. This reduces the overall cost and material dependencies.

## Disadvantage

One disadvantage of alkaline water electrolysers is the low-performance profiles caused by the commonly used thick diaphragms that increase ohmic resistance, the lower intrinsic conductivity of OH− compared to H+, and the higher gas crossover observed for highly porous diaphragms.[26]

## See also

* Proton exchange membrane electrolysis
* Solid oxide electrolyzer cell
* Anion exchange membrane electrolysis

## References

1. ↑ Divisek, J.; Schmitz, H. (1 January 1982). "A bipolar cell for advanced alkaline water electrolysis". International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 7 (9): 703–710. doi:10.1016/0360-3199(82)90018-0. Bibcode: 1982IJHE....7..703D.
2. ↑ Shiva Kumar, S.; Lim, Hankwon (November 2022). "An overview of water electrolysis technologies for green hydrogen production". Energy Reports 8: 13793–13813. doi:10.1016/j.egyr.2022.10.127. Bibcode: 2022EnRep...813793S.
3. ↑ David, Martín; Ocampo-Martínez, Carlos; Sánchez-Peña, Ricardo (June 2019). "Advances in alkaline water electrolyzers: A review". Journal of Energy Storage 23: 392–403. doi:10.1016/j.est.2019.03.001. Bibcode: 2019JEnSt..23..392D.
4. ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 Carmo, M; Fritz D; Mergel J; Stolten D (2013). "A comprehensive review on PEM water electrolysis". Journal of Hydrogen Energy 38 (12): 4901. doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2013.01.151. Bibcode: 2013IJHE...38.4901C.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Colli, A.N. (2019). "Non-Precious Electrodes for Practical Alkaline Water Electrolysis". Materials 12 (8): 1336. doi:10.3390/ma12081336. PMID 31022944. Bibcode: 2019Mate...12.1336C.
6. ↑ Chatenet, Marian; Pollet, Bruno G.; Dekel, Dario R.; Dionigi, Fabio; Deseure, Jonathan; Millet, Pierre; Braatz, Richard D.; Bazant, Martin Z. et al. (2022). "Water electrolysis: from textbook knowledge to the latest scientific strategies and industrial developments". Chemical Society Reviews 51 (11): 4583–4762. doi:10.1039/d0cs01079k. PMID 35575644.
7. ↑ "Alkaline Water Electrolysis". Energy Carriers and Conversion Systems. http://www.eolss.net/sample-chapters/c08/e3-13-03-02.pdf.
8. ↑ Schalenbach, M; Tjarks G; Carmo M; Lueke W; Mueller M; Stolten D (2016). "Acidic or Alkaline? Towards a New Perspective on the Efficiency of Water Electrolysis". Journal of the Electrochemical Society 163 (11): F3197. doi:10.1149/2.0271611jes. https://publications.rwth-aachen.de/record/681185.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Jordan, Thomas (2022), "Hydrogen technologies", Hydrogen Safety for Energy Applications (Elsevier): pp. 25–115, doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-820492-4.00005-1, ISBN 978-0-12-820492-4
10. ↑ Zeng, Kai; Zhang, Dongke (June 2010). "Recent progress in alkaline water electrolysis for hydrogen production and applications". Progress in Energy and Combustion Science 36 (3): 307–326. doi:10.1016/j.pecs.2009.11.002. Bibcode: 2010PECS...36..307Z.
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Smolinka, Tom (2021). Electrochemical Power Sources: Fundamentals, Systems, and Applications: Hydrogen Production by Water Electrolysis. Elsevier. ISBN 978-0-12-819424-9.
12. ↑ "AGFA Zirfon Perl Product Specification". http://www.agfa.com/specialty-products/solutions/membranes/zirfon-perl-utp-500/.
13. ↑ Schalenbach, M; Lueke W; Stolten D (2016). "Hydrogen Diffusivity and Electrolyte Permeability of the Zirfon PERL Separator for Alkaline Water Electrolysis". Journal of the Electrochemical Society 163 (14): F1480–F1488. doi:10.1149/2.1251613jes. http://jes.ecsdl.org/content/163/14/F1480.full.pdf.
14. ↑ Haug, P; Koj M; Turek T (2017). "Influence of process conditions on gas purity in alkaline water electrolysis". International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 42 (15): 9406–9418. doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.12.111. Bibcode: 2017IJHE...42.9406H.
15. ↑ Zhou, DaojinExpression error: Unrecognized word "et". (2020). "Recent Advances in Non-Precious Metal-Based Electrodes for Alkaline Water Electrolysis" (in en). ChemNanoMat 6 (3): 336–355. doi:10.1002/cnma.202000010. ISSN 2199-692X. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cnma.202000010.
16. ↑ Quaino, P; Juarez F; Santos E; Schmickler W (2014). "Volcano plots in hydrogen electrocatalysis–uses and abuses". Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology 42: 846–854. doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.96. PMID 24991521.
17. ↑ Schalenbach, M (2018). "The electrochemical dissolution of noble metals in alkaline media". Electrocatalysis 9 (2): 153–161. doi:10.1007/s12678-017-0438-y.
18. ↑ Cherevko, S (2016). "Oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions on Ru, RuO2, Ir, and IrO2 thin film electrodes in acidic and alkaline electrolytes: A comparative study on activity and stability". Catalysis Today 262: 170–180. doi:10.1016/j.cattod.2015.08.014.
19. ↑ Schiller, G; Henne R; Borock V (1995). "Vacuum Plasma Spraying of High-Performance Electrodes for Alkaline Water Electrolysis". Journal of Thermal Spray Technology 4 (2): 185. doi:10.1007/BF02646111. Bibcode: 1995JTST....4..185S.
20. ↑ Schiller, G; Henne R; Mohr P; Peinecke V (1998). "High Performance Electrodes for an Advanced Intermittently Operated 10-kW Alkaline Water Electrolyzer". International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 23 (9): 761–765. doi:10.1016/S0360-3199(97)00122-5. Bibcode: 1998IJHE...23..761S.
21. ↑ Schalenbach, M (2018). "An alkaline water electrolyzer with nickel electrodes enables efficient high current density operation". International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 43 (27): 11932–11938. doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2018.04.219. Bibcode: 2018IJHE...4311932S.
22. ↑ Esfandiari, N (2024). "Metal-based cathodes for hydrogen production by alkaline water electrolysis: Review of materials, degradation mechanism, and durability tests". Progress in Materials Science 143. doi:10.1016/j.pmatsci.2024.101254.
23. ↑ Scott, Keith (2020). Electrochemical methods for hydrogen production. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry. ISBN 978-1-78801-378-9.
24. ↑ Diaz-Morales, Oscar; Ferrus-Suspedra, David; Koper, Marc T. M. (2016). "The importance of nickel oxyhydroxide deprotonation on its activity towards electrochemical water oxidation". Chemical Science 7 (4): 2639–2645. doi:10.1039/C5SC04486C. PMID 28660036.
25. ↑ Shiva Kumar, S.; Himabindu, V. (2019-12-01). "Hydrogen production by PEM water electrolysis – A review". Materials Science for Energy Technologies 2 (3): 442–454. doi:10.1016/j.mset.2019.03.002. ISSN 2589-2991. Bibcode: 2019MSET....2..442S.
26. ↑ Martínez-Rodríguez, Angel; Abánades, Alberto (November 2020). "Comparative Analysis of Energy and Exergy Performance of Hydrogen Production Methods" (in en). Entropy 22 (11): 1286. doi:10.3390/e22111286. ISSN 1099-4300. PMID 33287054. Bibcode: 2020Entrp..22.1286M.

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