Abstract Detail

Abstract

Most of the chemicals produced today will likely remain predominant even in a lowcarbon society, as projected. The chemical industry is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions due to its energy-intensive processes that rely on fossil fuels and raw materials. Therefore, the development of more sustainable production processes is essential and a priority. Hydrogen produced from renewable electricity can be used to synthesize valuable chemicals, thus contributing to the decarbonization of the industry. Power-to-X technologies focus on the chemical storage of excess renewable energy. Products that would otherwise be obtained from fossil sources can be converted into electricity or used for other purposes. These processes, which include hydrogen production from renewable sources, could play a key role in decarbonizing sectors of the economy. In this context, hydrogen is presented as a key intermediate product, which can be produced via water electrolysis. Water electrolyzers are devices in which electrolysis occurs, a well-established and commercially used process for producing high-purity hydrogen by decomposing the water molecule. Electrolysis is an electrochemical reaction that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen using electrical energy. Currently, the economic viability of water electrolysis is primarily influenced by the cost of electricity and the capital expenditures associated with electrolyzers. However, over time, there is a trend of decreasing renewable electricity prices, while capital expenditures are becoming more relevant. Therefore, optimizing and reducing these capital costs is essential. Among electrochemical technologies for hydrogen production, alkaline water electrolysis is the most mature, with a technology readiness level (TRL) of 9. This technology is available for large-scale applications and uses low-cost materials for theelectrodes, such as iron and nickel. Due to these advantages, it dominates the current market and is a viable option for Power-to-X plants. In this work, the steps followed for the development of an alkaline water electrolysis cell from TRL) 3 to 4 will be presented. The approach taken to evaluate the tested components and the results obtained will be described. TRL 3 corresponded to the phase in which a proof of concept was conducted, demonstrating the critical function of the technology through analytical and experimental tests, which allowed for the verification of the basic system principle under controlled conditions. Subsequently, at TRL 4, the components and their configuration were validated in a laboratory environment, where it was verified that the system elements functioned correctly when integrated.

Biography

María José Lavorante collaborates actively to the Research and Development Division of Renewable Energy at the Institution of Scientific and Technological Research for Defense (CITEDEF), Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Her research interests include water electrolyzers, fuel cells, dark fermentation and conductometric titrations. She is the Head Professor at the Engineer Faculty, at the National Defense University in charge of the subject Solids and Colloidal Chemistry. For 2021-2024, she was the coordinator of the ¨Electrolyzers for industrial use and storage¨ subnetwork of the CYTED network ¨Hydrogen: production and uses in transportation and the electrical sector (H2transel)¨.