Bio-inspired catalyst for electrolytic hydrogen production
- Summary
- We have developed new electrode materials for electrolytic H2 generation that are inspired by the water splitting complex of photosynthetic organisms. Our catalysts are made from cheap and abundant metals (manganese and calcium) and are substantially more efficient than the chemical standard catalysts in neutral pH.
- Technology Benefits
- Our technology has the potential to address some of these challenges by:
• Simplification of system requirements: Our catalyst operates at neutral pH and totally in the dark (no photo-inhibition). Seawater may be usable as source material rather than fresh or purified water
• Reduced capitals costs: Our catalyst is made from cheap and abundant materials
• Reduced electricity input: The catalyst has already been shown to be 300% more efficient than platinum with substantial room for improvement (its design is based on a system that operates at almost 100% theoretical efficiency)
- Technology Application
- We have developed a model electrochemical cell and demonstrated the performance of our catalyst in this model system. We are now seeking partners to further develop this technology and test it within a commercial system. Such partners could include:
• Chemical companies and catalyst manufacturers - We would be interested in discussing scale up and licensing opportunities with these companies.
• Electrolyser companies - We are interested in working with companies that produce electrolysers to test and develop our electrocatalyst to suit their requirements.
- Detailed Technology Description
- The development of cheaper and more efficient catalysts is necessary to make electrolysis cost competitive with the polluting fossil fuel based methods currently used for hydrogen production. In particular, the oxygen evolving reaction (OER) suffers from slow kinetics and huge over potentials. The current benchmark OER catalysts, Ruthenium/Iridium oxide catalysts, are expensive, require extreme conditions and function at ≤ 50% efficiency. The development of more efficient and economically viable electrocatalysts for OER is critical to reduce the energy consumption and capital costs of electrolysers.
We have developed a series of OER catalysts that are composed of closely proximate, co-located, Ca and Mn oxide species layered on a graphene based material. The graphene layer can additionally be functionalized with an organic moiety to aid electron transport and conduct the electrons between the catalyst and the electrolytic circuit. When layered on a suitable substrate this composite material facilitates the electrolytic oxidation of water and can be used as the anode in an electrolytic cell.
Using a model electrochemical cell (with a Pt cathode) we have demonstrated that this system has the lowest over-potential for electrolytic water splitting in neutral pH (~ 1.3V vs Ag/AgCl), of any existing synthetic system, that we are aware of.
- Type of Cooperation
- Licensing/ commercial development
- Application Date
- 19/12/2017 00:00:00
- Application No.
- AU2017905074
- Classes
- N/A
- Country/Region
- Australia
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