Clean Energy Capability Portfolio | Clean Fuels |
Catalyst and System Design for
Photocatalytic Hydrogen
Production and Organic
Reforming
Particle and Catalysis Research Group ( PartCat ) engineer photocatalytic processes and materials to efficiently produce hydrogen , while simultaneously reforming organic molecules such as furfuryl alcohol into value-added products such as jet fuel precursors . The catalyst and systems have low capital and operational costs with direct solar energy inputs , creating a low-cost alternative for decentralised hydrogen production in the agriculture , mining , and chemical sectors . |
Competitive Advantage • Fully-equipped laboratory and research experts in catalyst and reactor design
• Efficient photocatalytic systems for simultaneous or decoupled hydrogen production and biomass reforming
• Low-cost hydrogen production with minimal energy input
Impact • Energy security by using diffusive solar energy to produce energy carriers
• Off-grid hydrogen generation for remote sites
• Economical catalyst and reactor design to minimise capital costs
• Hydrogen production by reforming organic waste to produce value-added chemicals such as jet fuel precursors
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Capabilities and Facilities • Nanoparticle synthesis and characterisation techniques
• Custom-designed photocatalytic reactor and light sources for measuring catalyst performance
• Demonstration-scale reactor system with reactor size of 0.5 m2 irradiation area and 5 Litre slurry capacity for scale-up and testing
• Product detection capabilities ( NMR , GC / MS , UV-Vis )
More Information Scientia Professor Rose Amal
School of Chemical Engineering
T : + 61 2 9385 4361
E : r . amal @ unsw . edu . au
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Successful Applications |
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• A fully-functional demonstration scale reactor system that can generate 1.6 Litres of hydrogen per hour , while reforming benzyl alcohol into hydrogen and benzaldehyde using a visible-light-active photocatalyst |
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• Lab-scale reforming of biomass feedstocks such as lignocellulosic waste-derived furfuryl alcohol to produce hydrogen , and value-added products ( hydrofuroin ) or photoreforming ethanol to produce hydrogen and acetaldehyde |
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