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SO2 carry-over and sulphur formation in a SO2-depolarized electrolyser

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Abstract

SO2-depolarized electrolysis (SDE) is considered as one of the most efficient hydrogen production methods. To maximize H2 production in SDE, the phenomena occurring in the cell need to be understood and controlled. In this work, electrochemically driven SO2 carry-over and elemental sulphur formation in cathode space are analysed by various methods: electrochemical, titration and photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS) under different conditions during SDE operation. The results indicate that SO2 carry-over is a fast process in an operating SDE and is difficult to control with only working parameter optimization. The PCS method provides SO2 carry-over information at early stages compared to other methods. Moreover, PCS might be further implemented as an in situ method for SDE system control.

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Acknowledgments

The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, under grant agreement no. 325320 of the SOL2HY2 project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science, School of Chemical Technology, Aalto University, P.O. Box 16100, 00076, Aalto, Finland

    A. Santasalo-Aarnio, J. Virtanen & M. Gasik

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  1. A. Santasalo-Aarnio
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  2. J. Virtanen
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  3. M. Gasik
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Correspondence to A. Santasalo-Aarnio.

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Santasalo-Aarnio, A., Virtanen, J. & Gasik, M. SO2 carry-over and sulphur formation in a SO2-depolarized electrolyser. J Solid State Electrochem 20, 1655–1663 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-016-3169-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-016-3169-8

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