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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 307 records · Page 17
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Development and testing of a PEM SO 2 -depolarized electrolyzer and an operating method that prevents sulfur accumulation

The hybrid sulfur (HyS) cycle is being developed as a technology to generate hydrogen by splitting water, using heat and electrical power from a nuclear or solar power plant. A key component is the SO 2 -depolarized electrolysis (SDE) cell, which reacts SO 2 and water to form hydrogen and sulfuric acid. SDE could also be used in once-through operation to consume SO 2 and generate hydrogen and sulfuric acid for sale. A proton exchange membrane (PEM) SDE cell based on a PEM fuel cell design was fabricated and tested. Measured cell potential as a function of anolyte pressure and flow rate, sulfuric acid concentration, and cell temperature are presented for this cell. Sulfur accumulation was observed inside the cell, which could have been a serious impediment to further development. A method to prevent sulfur formation was subsequently developed. As a result, this was made possible by a testing facility that allowed unattended operation for extended periods.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2019

Initial approaches in benchmarking and round robin testing for proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers

As ever increasing amounts of renewable electricity enter the energy supply mix on a regional, national and international basis, greater emphasis is being placed on energy conversion and storage technologies to deal with the oscillations, excess and lack of electricity. Hydrogen generation via proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) is one technology that offers a pathway to store large amounts of electricity in the form of hydrogen. The challenges to widespread adoption of PEMWE lie in their high capital and operating costs which both need to be reduced through R&D. An evaluation of reported performance data in literature for PEMWE reveals that there are excessive variations of in situ performance results that make it difficult to draw conclusions on the pathway forward to performance optimization and future R&D directions. In order to enable the meaningful comparison of in-situ performance evaluation across laboratories there is an obvious need for standardization of materials and testing protocols. Herein, we address this need by reporting the results of a round robin test effort conducted at the laboratories of five contributors to the IEA electrolysis annex 30. The effort utilized common sets of test articles, materials, test cells, and employed a set of shared test protocols. The maximum observed deviation between laboratories at 1 A cm-2 at cell temperatures of 60 and 80 degrees C, was 27 and 20 mV, respectively. The deviation of the results from laboratory to laboratory was a factor of 2-3 higher than the lowest deviation observed at one single lab and test station. However, the highest deviations observed were 1/10th of those extracted by a literature survey on similar material sets. The biggest takeaways are that cell temperature control appears to be the most significant source of deviation between results, while care must be taken with respect to break in conditions and cell electrical connections for meaningful performance data.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2020

Next-generation anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers operating for commercially relevant lifetimes

Alkaline anion exchange membrane (AEM) water electrolysis has gained increasing attention due to its potential to achieve low-cost, high performance hydrogen production. However, most existing membranes are not durable in industrial settings. In this work, we demonstrate good performance relative to industrial parameters using Sustainion® anion exchange membranes. Long-duration tests showed stable performance of 1 A/cm 2 at 1.85 V with a degradation rate of less than 1 μV/h over 10,000 h. The projected lifetime is thus over 20 years. Daily on/off cycling performance over the course of 30 years was simulated experimentally through accelerated voltage shock tests, resulting in a performance loss of only 0.15 μV/cycle over 11,000 cycles. As shown through impact and crossover testing, an improvement in performance is achieved by the addition of zirconia to the polymer matrix and mechanically reinforcing the membrane.

08 HYDROGEN↗
DOE OSTI2014

High-efficiency intermediate temperature solid oxide electrolyzer cells for the conversion of carbon dioxide to fuels

Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide in the intermediate temperature region was investigated by utilizing a reversible solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC). The current potential (i-V) curve exhibited a nonlinear characteristic at low current density. Differentiation of i-V curves revealed that the cell area specific resistance (ASR) was current-dependent and had its maximum in electrolysis mode and minimum in fuel cell mode. Impedance measurements were performed under different current densities and gas compositions, and the results were analyzed by calculating the distribution of relaxation times. The ASR variation resulted from the difference in electrochemical reactions occurring on the Ni-YSZ electrode, i.e., Ni-YSZ is a better electrode for CO oxidation than for CO2 reduction. Coke formation on Ni-YSZ played a crucial role in affecting its electrolysis performance in the intermediate temperature region. The ASR apex was associated with a decrease in cell temperature during electrolysis due to the endothermic nature of CO2 reduction reaction. It was postulated that such a decrease in temperature and rise in CO concentration led to coke formation. As a consequence, higher temperature (>700 degrees C), higher CO2 concentration (>50%), and the presence of hydrogen or steam are recommended for efficient CO2 reduction in solid oxide electrochemical cells. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Carbon deposition↗