Development and Performance Analysis of a Low-Cost Hydrogen Generation System Using Locally Available Materials

Abstract

In this paper, a low-cost water electrolyzer is developed and its performance study is presented. Locally found materials are used to develop the electrolyzer. The electrolyzer has two cells connected in parallel and bipolar electrode configuration. In common, different cells are connected in series but for this electrolyzer parallel connection has been tested. A very thin polymer, Nylon-140 has been used as separator membranes for this electrolyzer. In separator membrane assembly, the designed geometry creates two separate gas channels internally which enables the direct collection of hydrogen and oxygen gas from the designated outlet port of the electrolyzer. The geometry excludes the need of external tubing into each cell-compartments to collect hydrogen and oxygen separately. The developed electrolyzer is found to be 42% efficient with its highest production rate of 227.27 mL/min. The purity of hydrogen is found to be more than 92% and justified with the burn test. The cost is 20 times less than the commercial electrolyzers. The development method and scheme can be helpful to popularize the small scale use of hydrogen in Bangladesh for various renewable energy applications.

Dhaka Univ. J. Sci. 68(1): 49-56, 2020 (January)