Conference Session B5
Paper #6006
Disclaimer — This paper partially fulfills a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering students at the University
of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering. This paper is a student, not a professional, paper. This paper is based on
publicly available information and may not be provide complete analyses of all relevant data. If this paper is used for any
purpose other than these authors’ partial fulfillment of a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering students at
the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, the user does so at his or her own risk.
ELECTROLYSIS IN THE PRODUCTION OF HYDROGEN FUEL
Michael Bremer, mjb243@pitt.edu, Sanchez 10:00 AM, Dimitry Labko, dil23@pitt.edu, Mahboobin 4:00 PM
Revised Proposal — One of the fundamental reasons behind
the development of hydrogen fuel is the pursuit of a
sustainable, non-polluting energy source. Electrolysis, which
is one of the few ways to produce hydrogen fuel without
releasing pollutants into the atmosphere, has the best outlook
as a sustainable replacement to today’s fossil fuels. For that
reason, it will be the technology that we will investigate to find
out the current state of its process and to see if it is a viable
replacement for gasoline and oil through its use in hydrogenpowered vehicles, while looking at the social and
environmental impacts that could result from the mass
production of hydrogen fuel. In order for this technology to be
suited for the mass production of hydrogen fuel for the use in
vehicles, many recent advancements have been made to
increase the efficiency and decrease the power that is required
to complete the process. Electrolysis has a very bright future
and awaits further development.
Electrolysis is a chemical reaction that produces hydrogen
fuel by applying an electrical current into water to separate
hydrogen and oxygen atoms. Currently there are three forms
of electrolysis: alkaline, polymer electrolyte membrane
(PEM), and solid oxide electrolyte. Of these processes,
alkaline is the most developed process and produces hydrogen
at the highest rate. The importance of producing hydrogen
through electrolysis lies in the purity of the resulting gas. By
using electrolysis, the purity of the hydrogen fuel created can
reach levels of 99.999% [1]. With high purity levels, the
hydrogen fuel can be used directly in low temperature fuel
cells located inside hydrogen fuels cars. Using electrolysis to
produce hydrogen fuel is especially important to the
automotive industry due to the dire need of a sustainable
energy source to replace the current internal combustion
engine which relies on fossil fuel.
In this paper we will be discussing the brief history of
electrolysis as a method of hydrogen fuel production, as well
as the many recent advancements that have led up to the
technology’s current status, and where it will be in the near
future. We will do this by looking into several sources provided
by leading scientists in this field. These sources include journal
articles and patents that show the current state of this
technology and in which ways this technology needs to be
developed. The ways in which the development of electrolysis
ties into the sustainable automotive industry will also be
discussed, showing what effect this hydrogen production may
University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering 1
2016/01/29
have on the expanding the field of hydrogen-powered vehicles.
As for the process of electrolysis, this paper will outline the
advantages, disadvantages, and social and environmental
impacts of what an investment into this technology would
bring.
REFERENCES
[1] A. Ursua (2012) “Hydrogen Production from Water
Electrolysis” Proceedings of the IEEE (online article) DOI:
10.1109/JPROC.2011.2156750
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
A. Ursua (2012) “Hydrogen Production from Water
Electrolysis” Proceedings of the IEEE (online article) DOI:
10.1109/JPROC.2011.2156750
This article originates from a peer reviewed journal hosted
by IEEE and offers a detailed summary of the current process
of electrolysis and what direction it is headed in the future. The
article opens with a step by step analysis of the basic
electrolysis operation, citing specific parts necessary for
completion. The article then continues to delve into each of the
three different kinds of electrolysis.
C. Koroneos (2012) “A review on exergy comparison of
hydrogen production methods from renewable energy sources”
Royal
Society
of
Chemistry
(online
journal)
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2012/ee/c2ee01098
d
This article uses the thermodynamic concept of “exergy” to
discuss the viability of hydrogen as a mass produced
alternative fuel source. Exergy is the amount of energy
available for use, in this case that amount of energy that
electrolysis can reasonably provide. This article is hosted by
the Royal Society of Chemistry, a reputable source for articles
discussing chemical processes.
N Kelly (2014) “Integrated Solar-Powered high-pressure
hydrogen production and battery charging system”
Provisional
Patent
(online
patent)
https://www.google.com/patents/US8721868
This patent focuses on making automotive transport
virtually pollution free. Although electric cars do not produce
Michael Bremer
Dimitry Labko
pollution, the creation of the electricity used to power the cars
does. In this regard the inventors want to create a power source
using hydrogen fuel and solar charging to use in their vehicles.
The lead inventor, Nelson Kelly, is responsible for many
advancements in electric vehicles and is a Certified Vehicle
Electrification Professional.
This article was published by a peer-reviewed journal:
“International Journal of Hydrogen Production,” and reviews
the social and environmental impacts of incorporating
hydrogen fuel as provider of energy to a large area. It
investigates the methods of electrolysis and considers
alternative techniques in specific processes such as PEM
electrolysis with a mercury cell diaphragm. The article also
discusses possible negative health effects, such as how
humanity toxicity, radiation, and acidification may result from
hydrogen production.
E. Zoulias (2004) “A Review on Water Electrolysis” Center
for Renewable Energy Sources (online journal)
http://www.cres.gr/kape/publications/papers/dimosieyseis/ydr
ogen/A%20REVIEW%20ON%20WATER%20ELECTROL
YSIS.pdf
This article reviews the history of water electrolysis in the
use of hydrogen fuel production. It opens with a historical
background followed by the theory behind water electrolysis.
Later on the writers discuss developments in electrodes for
electrolysis. This article is written by researchers at the Centre
of Renewable Energy Sources and Saving, a Greek national
laboratory that sponsors the advancement of renewable energy
sources.
K. Zeng (2010) “Recent progress in alkaline water electrolysis
for hydrogen production and applications” Progress in Energy
and
Combustion
Science
(online
article)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S036012850
9000598
This article, located in the peer-reviewed journal “Progress
in Energy and Combustion Science,” examines the feasibility
of mass producing hydrogen and supplying it to an extensive
power network. The author’s idea is to create small scale
hydrogen producing electrolyzers locally instead of the large
power plants that support the current petroleum industry. The
author explains that this is the most efficient way to provide
fuel for hydrogen powered vehicles.
C. Koroneos (2004) “Life cycle assessment of hydrogen fuel
production processes” International Journal of Hydrogen
Energy
(online
article)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S036031990
4000655
This article’s goal is to examine the full life cycle of
hydrogen production, from the pre-production to its uses in
fuel cell vehicles and homes. It focuses on confirming the
belief that hydrogen fuel is truly pollution-free and that it will
not negatively affect the environment. This article was
published by the peer-reviewed journal: “International Journal
of Hydrogen Energy” and we plan to use it so support our
thesis that hydrogen is safe and sustainable alternative to
petroleum.
F. Suleman (2015) “Environmental impact assessment and
comparison of some hydrogen production options”
International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (online article)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S036031991
5007697
2