Photocatalytic hydrogen production from glycerol - preliminary study using Pt/TiO2 and Pd/TiO2 as catalysts

Abstract

Concern for the environment and the use of renewable energy sources are the two main priorities of energy policy combined with the environmental policy based on the principles of sustainable development. Many aspects should be taken into account in the case of energy production based on biomass/biofuels, in particular the possibility of additional by-products formation. When it comes to biodiesel production, the formation of huge amounts of surplus crude glycerol may be such a problem. The well-known, traditional methods of glycerol utilization are ineffective, which was proved by the big price drop in the glycerol market. High hopes to solve this problem are placed in new technologies: bio-conversion of glycerol to various chemicals or energy carriers and photocatalytic conversion to hydrogen. The paper presents the results of some preliminary studies of photocatalytic glycerol conversion to hydrogen. The investigation was focused on proper selection of catalysts and on the search for the optimum conditions of the photocatalytic process using TiO2 doped with platinum or palladium (0.1, 0.5, 1 wt.%). The initial glycerol concentration in the solution was 4.5%. Photocatalysts were obtained by the sol-gel method. The effect of irradiation intensity was achieved by using 2-4 xenon lamps, the power of 75 W each. Gas product was analyzed by gas chromatography. The highest efficiency of hydrogen production (19.33 mmol/g of catalyst·h) was obtained for Pt doped TiO2. The production rate of hydrogen depended on catalyst concentration, the amount of the noble metal in the catalysts, the concentration of glycerol in the solution and the intensity of irradiation.