Jul/Aug 2004
Sunlight utilized to extract hydrogen from water
Non-conventional Energy
In Canada, Solar Hydrogen Energy Corp. (SHEC Labs) has exhibited the
feasibility of obtaining hydrogen from water using its proprietary
solar thermochemical process. Using sunlight and a solar concentrator
developed by SHEC Labs, researchers at the Arizona Public Service
Solar Test and Research Facility in the United States were able to
extract hydrogen from water by using solar heat. This successful demo
is the second for SHEC Labs. Earlier, it had produced hydrogen from
natural gas using a similar technology.
SHEC Labs solar thermochemical process has the potential to become
an economically viable method for commercial-scale synthesis of clean
renewable hydrogen. It is based on a thermal-catalytic cycle that
needs heat as an input. Instead of burning fossil fuels (generating
greenhouse gases in the process) to obtain the necessary process heat,
SHEC Lab process will use solar energy with the help of mirrors to
focus sunlight on to a chemical reactor.
Researchers in the United States, Japan, Canada and France have
investigated thermal water splitting, a radically different technology
to generate hydrogen. This process needs temperatures up to 3,000C to
split molecules of water. On the other hand, SHEC Labs catalytic
process operates at around 400C. It also dramatically lowers radiant
energy losses and curtails material problems associated with higher
temperatures. An 18 inch diameter solar concentrator has been able to
achieve temperatures exceeding 750C. SHEC Labs has also developed
advanced high ratio solar concentrators capable of focusing the power
of the sun by 5,000 times.
