A 10 × 10 cm2 protonic ceramic electrochemical hydrogen pump for efficient and durable hydrogen purification

Abstract

Protonic ceramic electrochemical hydrogen pumps (PCEHPs) have garnered notice as a promising technology for the hydrogen separation. However, the practical application of PCEHPs has been limited by the insufficient performance and stability. In this work, a 10 × 10 cm2 PCEHP with the symmetrical configuration of “porous Ni-BaCe0.7Zr0.1Y0.1Yb0.1O3-δ (BCZYYb) supporting layer | porous Ni-BCZYYb functional layer | dense BCZYYb electrolyte layer | porous Ni-BCZYYb functional layer | porous Ni-BCZYYb supporting layer” is fabricated by the tape-casting, hot-pressing lamination, and co-sintering process. The PCEHP with an active area of 1.13cm2 shows an impressive hydrogen separation rate of 7.93 mL min−1 cm−2 under 0.3 V with a Faradaic efficiency of 88 % at 650 °C. Furthermore, it exhibits excellent stability for over 500 h in both the electrolysis and thermal cycling modes. Notably, a 10 × 10 cm2 PCEHP with a large active area of 81 cm2 was fabricated and demonstrated a remarkable H2 flux of 153.32 mL min−1 at 650 °C under 0.3 V. The results indicate that the developed PCEHPs have great potential for hydrogen purification.