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A Bias‐Free, Stand‐Alone, and Scalable Photovoltaic–Electrochemical Device for Solar Hydrogen Production
Author(s) -
Lee Minoh,
Turan Bugra,
Becker JanPhilipp,
Welter Katharina,
Klingebiel Benjamin,
Neumann Elmar,
Sohn Yoo Jung,
Merdzhanova Tsvetelina,
Kirchartz Thomas,
Finger Friedhelm,
Rau Uwe,
Haas Stefan
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
advanced sustainable systems
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.499
H-Index - 24
ISSN - 2366-7486
DOI - 10.1002/adsu.202000070
Subject(s) - photovoltaic system , hydrogen production , water splitting , materials science , hydrogen , solar energy , optoelectronics , bifunctional , nanotechnology , engineering physics , electrical engineering , catalysis , chemistry , engineering , biochemistry , organic chemistry , photocatalysis
Although photovoltaic–electrochemical (PV–EC) water splitting is likely to be an important and powerful tool to provide environmentally friendly hydrogen, most developments in this field have been conducted on a laboratory scale so far. In order for the technology to make a sizeable impact on the energy transition, scaled up devices must be developed. Here a scalable (64 cm 2 aperture area) artificial PV–EC device composed of triple‐junction thin‐film silicon solar cells in conjunction with an electrodeposited bifunctional nickel iron molybdenum water‐splitting catalyst is shown. The device shows a solar to hydrogen efficiency of up to 4.67% (5.33% active area, H 2 production rate of 1.26 μmol H 2 /s) without bias assistance and wire connection and works for 30 min. The gas separation is enabled by incorporating a membrane in a 3D printed device frame. In addition, a wired small area device is also fabricated in order to show the potential of the concept. The device is operated for 127 h and initially 7.7% solar to hydrogen efficiency with a PV active area of 0.5 cm2 is achieved.