EP1723267A2

EP1723267A2 - Photoelectrochemical reaction cell

Info

Publication number: EP1723267A2
Application number: EP05700999A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Dieter Ostermann; Michael Depenbrock
Original assignee: Zylum Beteiligungs GmbH and Co Patente II KG
Current assignee: Zylum Beteiligungs GmbH and Co Patente II KG
Priority date: 2004-03-11
Filing date: 2005-01-18
Publication date: 2006-11-22
Also published as: AU2005221010A1; WO2005088758A3; US20080213641A1; AU2005221010B2; WO2005088758A2; DE102004012303B3; CA2558226A1; CA2558226C

Abstract

The invention relates to a reaction cell for the photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen gas, comprising a housing (1,15) which is filled with an aqueous electrolyte (3), a pair of electrodes consisting of a first electrode (4,17) of a doped conductor which is immersed in the electrolytes (3) and a second electrode (5,8) which is made of metal and which is immersed in the electrolytes (3) and which is electrically conductively connected to the first electrode (4,17), also comprising a light source (L) which illuminates the pair of electrodes. The reaction cell is characterized in that the electrodes (4, 17, 5, 18) are connected to each other in a flat manner, the pair of electrodes divides the reaction cell into two chambers (A, G, B, H), wherein the chambers (A, G, B, H) are connected to each other in a fluidically conducting manner and the housing (1, 15) is provided with at least one gas outlet (1a, 15a, 1b, 15b)

Description

Photoelectrochemical reaction cell

The invention relates to a reaction cell for the photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen gas with a housing filled with an aqueous electrolyte, with a pair of electrodes consisting of a first electrode immersed in the electrolyte made of a doped semiconductor and an immersed in the electrolyte and electrically conductively connected to the first electrode second electrode made of a metal, and with a light source irradiating the pair of electrodes.

Hydrogen is considered to be the energy source of the future due to its ecological advantages - only water vapor is produced during combustion. However, around 90% of the large-scale production of hydrogen gas is currently based on petrochemical processes, ie including fossil fuels, especially natural gas. Another option for hydrogen production is the separation of the hydrogen gas components, some of which are highly concentrated, in the exhaust gases from refineries, industrial furnaces or chemical plants. A highly efficient way of producing hydrogen gas can be seen in water electrolysis, ie in the splitting of the water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen gas by means of an electrical current conducted through the water. However, in the overall energy balance and in assessing the environmental friendliness of this process to take into account with what effort and from what energy source the electrical energy consumed in the electrolysis was made available. An economical large-scale implementation of the electrolysis of water using sunlight has so far failed due to the low efficiency of available solar cells. The objective is therefore to develop reaction cells that can be used to produce hydrogen gas directly from an aqueous electrolyte by using the radiation energy from sunlight.

Reaction cells of the type mentioned at the outset are known at least in terms of their basic structure from the scientific literature. An electrochemical cell is described in the article "Electrochemical Photolysis of Water at a Semiconductor Electrode" (Nature Vol. 238, July 7, 1972), which consists of two individual containers connected by a line, each of which is filled with water as the electrolyte , In the first container, an electrode consisting of a semiconductor in the form of an n-doped TiO ₂ crystal is immersed in the electrolyte. This electrode is electrically connected to a platinum electrode located in the second container via an external load resistor. When the Ti0 ₂ electrode is irradiated with visible light through a window provided in the wall of the first container, electron-hole pairs are formed on the surface of the Ti0 ₂ semiconductor crystal, which are separated by the electrical field existing in the semiconductor at the interface with the electrolyte become. While according to the theory the defect electrons ("holes") the oxygen contained in the water molecules on the surface of the Ti0 ₂ crystal

KN / be 031037WO Oxidize with the formation of oxygen gas, the electrons flow via the outer circuit to the platinum electrode, where they reduce hydrogen ions (protons) with the formation of hydrogen gas. The ion concentration between the two containers is equalized via the line connecting the containers, which is provided with an ion-permeable membrane in order to prevent liquid exchange between the containers.

While the authors report a successful decomposition of water with the formation of hydrogen and oxygen gas, the documented experimental results with the reaction cell described above could not be reproduced in the following years, so that the reaction cell was ultimately not considered suitable for the production of hydrogen gas can.

In the Encyclopedia of Electrochemistry (Volume 6, Semiconductor Electrodes and Photoelectrochemistry, pp. 347 - 357, publisher S. Licht) further construction principles of photoelectrochemical reaction cells are described. These each include a container, for example a glass tube, which consists of a plurality of plate-shaped pairs of electrodes which are in contact with one another, each consisting of a doped semiconductor electrode (for example n-Ti0 ₂ , n-Pb ₃ 0 ₄ or n-CdSe) and a counter-electrode made of platinum, Lead, CoS or another material that is divided into individual chambers. The electrode pairs themselves are arranged in the container in the manner of bulkheads, so that no liquid or gas exchange is possible between the individual chambers. The surfaces of the semiconductor electrode face each other

KN / be 031037WO and the counter electrode of adjacent pairs of electrodes. Furthermore, the pairs of electrodes are each tilted from the vertical, so that the respective semiconductor surfaces are illuminated by light radiated into the container, which leads to the formation of electron-hole pairs. The chambers are filled with differently composed aqueous electrolytes. The two outer chambers are connected to each other via a salt bridge to form a closed circuit. During operation, only a charge carrier transport takes place through the respective electrolyte in the individual chambers, while in the two outermost chambers oxygen gas is formed on one side in an oxidation reaction and on the other side of the cell in a reduction reaction hydrogen gas.

A disadvantage of the cell described above is primarily its complicated structure and the fact that different electrolytes are used in the different chambers, which increases the operating effort. In addition, they are purely laboratory structures whose usability on a large scale is questionable.

The invention is accordingly based on the object of creating a reaction cell of the type mentioned at the outset which enables the production of hydrogen gas in a photoelectrochemical reaction in a reliable and reproducible manner and is distinguished by a particularly simple structure which is suitable for industrial series production.

KN / be 031037 O The object is achieved in a reaction cell according to the preamble of claim 1 in that the electrodes are in surface contact with one another, in that the pair of electrodes divides the reaction cell into two chambers, the chambers being connected to one another in an ion-conducting manner, and in that the housing has at least one gas outlet opening.

As experimental studies have shown, the reaction cell constructed according to the invention can be used to produce hydrogen gas from an aqueous electrolyte in continuous operation. The decisive reason for the reliable course of the photoelectrochemical reaction lies in the direct contacting of the two electrodes without the interposition of an electrical conductor, for example a copper wire or a load resistor, as in the case of the prior art. The decisive factor is that in the case of a metallic second electrode _, an ohmic contact is formed between the semiconductor electrode and the metal electrode, which enables free charge carrier exchange between the two electrodes. In the case of a second electrode consisting of a semiconductor doped in the opposite direction to the first electrode, a pn junction is formed at the boundary layer between the electrodes. Furthermore, the reaction cell is characterized by a particularly simple construction, which requires only a few very simply constructed and robust components and is also suitable for low-maintenance continuous use for the large-scale production of hydrogen gas. By dividing the reaction cell into two chambers by appropriate

KN / be 031037 O The arrangement of the pair of electrodes allows the partial reactions to take place spatially separated from one another, so that mixing of the resulting gases during their production and thus contamination of the hydrogen gas produced is avoided. At the same time, due to the ion-conducting connection of the two chambers, an unhindered ion transport through the electrolyte can take place. In the simplest case, the two chambers are connected to one another in a liquid-conducting manner. It is also possible to implement the ion-conducting connection between the two chambers by means of an ion-permeable membrane.

For efficient cell operation, it is important that the light from the light source strikes the semiconductor electrode with as large an area as possible and with high intensity, so that a large number of electron-hole pairs are formed there at the interface with the electrolyte. Consequently, an arrangement of the pair of electrodes is preferred in which the electrodes on the side of the first electrode facing away from the light are in contact with one another, so that the free, non-contacted surface of the first electrode is directly irradiated. In principle, however, the pair of electrodes can also be arranged relative to the light source in such a way that the metallic second electrode is irradiated and — assuming a sufficiently small thickness of the second electrode — largely transmits the radiation. The radiation penetrates through the contacted surface of the first electrode (semiconductor), where it is then absorbed to form electron-hole pairs.

KN / be 031037 O A two-dimensional contacting of the two electrodes can in principle be achieved by pressing, screwing or by another common method for the two-dimensional connection of two surfaces. Flat contacting can, however, be achieved particularly well if the second electrode, in the case of a metallic electrode material, is evaporated onto one side of the first electrode. In addition to optimal contacting, this also has the advantage that the material used for the second electrode can be used particularly economically, which contributes to a reduction in the production costs of the reaction cell. An extremely thin metal layer can be produced on the first electrode by vapor deposition of the metal of the second electrode, which is particularly advantageous if the second electrode is irradiated by the light source, since it is important that a large part of the radiation in the underlying semiconductor electrode is conducted. In principle, the first electrode (semiconductor) can also be applied to the second electrode (metal or semiconductor) in the same way. It is thus possible to grow a semiconductor layer on a metal or semiconductor layer.

The two electrodes themselves can be shaped in different ways. It proves to be particularly expedient if the electrodes are each flat, in particular plate-shaped, with a front and a back, the front of the first electrode being irradiated by the light source and the back of the first electrode making contact with the front of the second electrode is.

KN / be 031037WO In principle, any light source which emits light quanta with a photon energy, which supply the photo voltage (eg water: 1.23 V) required for the decomposition of the electrolyte, is suitable as the light source. However, it should be noted here that the photon energy must be matched to the bandgap of the semiconductor material used.

The light source can be arranged outside the reaction cell, but can also be located inside the cell. In order to enable particularly economical and environmentally friendly operation of the reaction cell, sunlight is preferably used as the light source. In the case of an open housing, an external light source can radiate into the cell from above onto the surface of the first electrode. However, the light irradiation through the housing wall is particularly advantageous. For this purpose, this is either made of a light-transparent material, for example plexiglass, or of an opaque material and in this case has a window for light irradiation. Suitable housing materials are, for example, stainless steel or various plastics. In addition, metals such as copper, aluminum, gold, brass or nickel are also suitable. An important criterion when choosing the material is that the electrolyte used cannot have a corrosive effect on it. It goes without saying that the housing material chosen should not be permeable to the gas produced, in particular the hydrogen gas. Likewise, he should not be able to store the gas.

KN / be 031037WO In case of Einstrahlfensters this should in terms of the incident light as broadband as possible be transparent ^". In particular, should the window can also happen UV components of the incident light absorption-free as possible, as large by UV photon electron-hole pairs in semiconductors with particularly The window should therefore be made of a UV-transparent material, for which quartz glass, plexiglass, ZnSe, ZnS, borosilicate glass, MgF ₂ or sapphire are particularly suitable.

In addition to a large selection of suitable housing materials, the housing geometry can also be designed to be very variable. Cuboid geometries are suitable, for example.

Reaction cells whose housing is closed on all sides except for at least one gas outlet opening have proven particularly robust. The gas produced during the photoelectrochemical reaction taking place in the cell can easily be removed through the gas outlet opening. The gas outlet opening can expediently be closed gas-tight by a valve. This enables, for example, easy transport of the reaction cell without the risk of contamination of the electrolyte.

In order to enable complete separation of the hydrogen gas produced during the reaction from the remaining gas, a gas stream emerging from the gas outlet opening of the reaction cell can be used

KN / be 031037WO Hydrogen-permeable membrane can be arranged. This can consist in particular of a metal layer which allows hydrogen molecules to pass through while other gas molecules are retained. Membranes made of palladium alloys are particularly suitable for this.

Another structurally simple possibility of completely separating the gases formed on the two electrode surfaces is that the two chambers formed by the pair of electrodes in the cell each have a gas outlet opening through which the gases can be discharged separately from one another.

According to a further useful embodiment of the invention, it is provided that the reaction cell has a heat exchanger. On the one hand, heat of reaction can be removed by means of a heat exchanger. On the other hand, by passing a heated liquid through the heat exchanger, freezing of the electrolyte during winter operation of the reaction cell can also be prevented. Conveniently, the heat exchanger should be installed on the side away from the light in the reaction cell.

The aqueous electrolyte used in each case can be composed differently. In particular, the reaction cell can also be operated with water as the electrolyte without any problems and permanently, hydrogen and oxygen gas being produced. To produce a particularly pure gas, it should be distilled water (aqua bidest). Also conceivable

KN / be 031037 O However, the use of other electrolytes, for example aqueous acidic solutions, is also possible, in addition to hydrogen also other gases can be produced instead of oxygen. The position of the element in question in the electrochemical series is decisive. To further increase the purity of the gases produced, it is advisable to additionally degas the electrolyte beforehand in order to eliminate gases dissolved in the electrolyte.

If water is used as the electrolyte, an anti-freeze can also be added to prevent freezing at low temperatures, similar to the use of a heat exchanger.

The first electrode of the reaction cell consists of a doped semiconductor. Various semiconductor materials, both direct and indirect semiconductors, are suitable for this. In particular, the first electrode can consist of a semiconductor from the group Ti0 ₂ , SrTi0 ₃ , Ge, Si, Cu ₂ S, GaAs, CdS, MoS ₂ , CdSeS, Pb ₃ 0 ₄ or CdSe. Titanium dioxide, which is produced in large quantities at low cost, for example for use as a white pigment, has proven particularly suitable. The Ti0 ₂ can be used in various modifications as a semiconductor electrode in the reaction cell. Ultrathin Ti0 ₂ layers, Ti0 ₂ films, polycrystalline Ti0 ₂ , sintered Ti0 ₂ powder and special Ti0 ₂ crystal structures such as rutile, anatase or brookite are conceivable.

The doping of the semiconductor causes, inter alia, that above the valence band or below the conduction band in the

KN / be 031037 O forbidden zone (energy gap, band gap), further states that can be occupied by charge carriers are formed, so that there is a practically reduced band gap in the semiconductor. This can be used to the effect that even with semiconductors with a large band gap, such as Ti0 ₂ (band gap 3.1 eV, this corresponds to a cut-off wavelength of approx. 400 nm), low-energy components of the visible spectrum can also be used. Both n-doping and p-doping can be considered. In the case of an n-doped semiconductor, an electrical field forms at the interface with the electrolyte in the semiconductor, which causes the electron-hole pairs formed in the semiconductor surface upon irradiation to be separated in such a way that the negatively charged electrons enter the interior of the semiconductor and continue to flow into the surface-contacted second electrode, while the positively charged holes or defect electrons remaining on the surface oxidize the electrolyte. As a result, hydrogen gas is formed on the surface of the second electrode by reducing the electrolyte. In the case of a p-doped semiconductor, the situation is reversed, ie the electric field which is formed is directed in such a way that the holes flow into the surface-contacted second electrode, while the electrons on the semiconductor surface reduce the electrolyte, with hydrogen gas being formed.

If a doped Ti0 ₂ crystal is used as the first electrode, the irradiated surface of this electrode is advantageously designed as a (110) or (100) crystal surface. This promotes dissociation

KN / be 031037 O of the electrolyte molecules, especially water molecules, on the electrode surface.

In many of the semiconductor materials mentioned, due to the large band gap, only a relatively small, high-energy part of the visible spectrum can be used for the photoelectrochemical reaction. The usable spectral range can be extended to low-energy components by adsorbing dye molecules on the irradiated semiconductor surface. The dye molecule is electronically excited by the incident light and subsequently releases the excited electron into the conduction band of the semiconductor. This process, known as "electron injection", has proven to be particularly effective with Ti0 ₂ semiconductors.

Another way of expanding the usable light spectrum is to adsorb platinum atoms, preferably in the form of clusters, on the surface of the first electrode, as a result of which interface states, i.e. Additional permitted energy states arise within the forbidden zone of the respective semiconductor, which expand the usable wavelength range to low-energy light. It goes without saying that the surface of the first electrode must not be completely coated with platinum, since this would result in a metal-semiconductor-metal system which cannot be used for a photoelectrochemical reaction.

The second electrode, which is in contact with the surface of the first electrode, is made of a metal or one opposite

KN / be 031037 O first electrode oppositely doped semiconductor. In the case of a semiconductor, the above-mentioned semiconductor materials are also suitable. A pn junction is formed between the two semiconductor electrodes. If a metal is used, it must form an ohmic contact when making contact with the semiconductor material of the first electrode. When selecting a suitable metal, it must also be taken into account that this does not react with the reaction products or the electrolyte, for example, so that it forms no or only with difficulty oxides. The elements Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Os, Ir, Pt, Au, Al, Cr, Cu, Ni, Mo, Pb, Ta and W. are therefore particularly suitable, as already mentioned, a particularly advantageous method of contacting of the two electrodes consists of evaporating the metallic second electrode onto the first one, the noble metal can be used accordingly sparingly and therefore relatively inexpensively.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, a plurality of electrode pairs are provided in the reaction cell, the respective first electrodes of the electrode pairs being made of different semiconductor materials. Here, the semiconductor materials should be selected with respect to their respective bandgap such that they absorb in different spectral ranges, so that the widest possible wavelength range of the light source, in particular sunlight, is used to form electron-hole pairs and thus to initiate the reduction and oxidation reactions can be. For example, three pairs of electrodes can be provided, the first electrode in each case in the first pair of electrodes made of TiO ₂ ,

KN / be 031037 O the second pair of electrodes is made of SrTi0 ₃ and the third is made of GaAs and the second electrodes are made of evaporated platinum. Advantageously, the electrode pairs are arranged one behind the other in the direction of incidence of the light, the first and the second electrodes of the electrode pairs in each case being opposite one another, which means that, in the case of at least one pair of electrodes, the second electrode faces the light source. For this purpose, the respective metal electrodes in particular are to be made sufficiently thin to prevent excessive absorption of the radiation in the metal. This can easily be achieved by evaporating an extremely thin metal layer on the respective semiconductor electrodes. The fact that, as provided according to the invention, the first and the second electrodes of the electrode pairs each face each other, only one type of gas is produced in each of the individual chambers formed by the electrode pairs. This means that in the case of an n-doped semiconductor, only hydrogen gas is produced between the opposing metal electrodes of adjacent electrode pairs, which is expediently derived from the reaction cell into a gas storage device via a gas outlet opening assigned to this chamber.

In order to be able to use the light energy radiated into the reaction cell particularly well for the photoelectrochemical reaction, the first electrode of the pairs of electrodes arranged one behind the other in the direction of radiation should be one in relation to the first electrode of the pair of electrodes arranged upstream in the radiation direction

KN / be 031037 O have a smaller band gap. This means that the irradiated light first irradiates the first electrode of the first pair of electrodes, which has the greatest band gap, only the photons with the highest energy being absorbed there. The first electrode (second pair of electrodes) following in the direction of radiation, which has a smaller band gap, absorbs photons of lower energy as well as the high-energy photons which were transmitted through the first electrode of the first pair of electrodes. In the subsequent first electrode (third electrode pair), which in turn has a smaller band gap, photons with in turn lower photon energy are absorbed as well as all higher-energy photons that penetrate into this electrode. This continues up to the first electrode of the last pair of electrodes in the direction of irradiation, whereby an optimal utilization of the energy of the irradiated light is achieved.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a device for converting light energy into electrical energy, which is of simple and compact design and allows use as a power source regardless of location.

The object is achieved according to the invention by a device for converting light energy into electrical energy with a reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 27 in that an anode-cathode- in the reaction cell or in another cell connected to the reaction cell via at least one gas line. Arrangement is provided, the anode and the cathode via an outer

KN / be 031037 O Circuit to which an electrical consumer can be connected, are conductively connected to one another and the anode and the cathode are arranged such that they are flushed by the gases produced on the first and second electrodes of the pair of electrodes.

In the device according to the invention, hydrogen gas is initially generated in the manner described above on the electrodes of the pair of electrodes and, for example, oxygen gas is also generated when water is used as the electrolyte. According to the invention, an additional anode-cathode arrangement is provided in the device, which is arranged such that the anode and cathode are flushed by the gases. The anode-cathode arrangement can be arranged in the reaction cell. However, it is also possible to provide the anode-cathode arrangement in a further cell which is connected to the reaction cell via at least one gas line in order to transport the gases produced in the reaction cell to the anode-cathode arrangement. At the anode and the cathode, the gases washing around them are then reduced or oxidized in the redox reactions reversed to the reactions taking place in the reaction cell, the charge carriers obtained in the oxidation flowing to the counterelectrode via the external circuit connecting the cathode to the anode. An electrical consumer can be connected to this circuit and is thus supplied with electrical energy. The ions generated by the oxidation or reduction reaction react with one another to form molecules of the electrolyte located in the reaction cell. Is considered

KN / be 031037WO When electrolyte water is used, the hydrogen and oxygen gas generated reacts again to water.

According to a preferred embodiment of the device according to the invention, the cathode-anode arrangement is designed as a fuel cell. For this purpose, the two electrodes are connected to one another by an exchange membrane through which the hydrogen ions which are generated at the anode can migrate to the cathode. There they can react to water with negatively charged oxygen ions, for example. As already mentioned, charge equalization takes place via the external circuit. The particular advantage of the fuel cell is that it can be easily integrated into the reaction cell, it should preferably be arranged above the pair of electrodes, so that the gases formed on the surfaces of the electrodes of the pair of electrodes wash them particularly intensively. The use of a low-temperature fuel cell, which has a working temperature of 80 ° C., is also particularly advantageous for the use of the fuel cell in the reaction cell. As a result, the reaction cell is not subjected to excessive thermal stress.

According to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is provided that a plurality of electrode pairs and a plurality of fuel cells are arranged next to one another in an alternating sequence in the reaction cell, an external consumer being connectable to the respective external circuit of the fuel cells. With this type of arrangement, a closed system can be established, in which the electrode pairs

KN / be 031037 O Gases produced by the adjacent fuel cells, which act individually or in parallel as power sources, are used again and converted into molecules of the electrolyte, especially water.

According to an alternative embodiment, the anode-cathode arrangement is arranged in a further cell and is designed as a galvanic cell. The anode and the cathode, which preferably consist of platinum, are washed around separately by the gases emerging from the reaction cell, for example hydrogen and oxygen gas. For this purpose, the gases from the reaction cell are passed via a common line into the further cell, where they are separated on a membrane in the manner described above. However, the gases are preferably passed separately into the further cell via two lines, so that subsequent separation can be omitted. Both electrodes, anode and cathode, are immersed in an electrolyte, for example dilute sulfuric acid. Hydrogen gas is oxidized to hydrogen ions at the anode. The transport of the electrons from the anode to the cathode takes place, as in the case of the fuel cell, via an external circuit to which an electrical consumer can be connected. At the cathode, the hydrogen ions migrating through the electrolyte react with the oxygen present and the electrons transported through the external circuit to form water:

0 ₂ + 4H ⁺ + 4e ^~ -> 2H ₂ 0

KN / be 031037WO An efficiency of approx. 60% can be assumed for both the fuel cell and the galvanic cell.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing which shows exemplary embodiments. Show it:

1 shows a reaction cell for the photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen gas with a pair of electrodes in a highly schematic side sectional view,

2 shows the reaction cell of FIG. 1 in an embodiment modified from FIG. 1 with three pairs of electrodes in a side sectional view,

Fig. 3 shows the reaction cell of Fig. 1 in a construction example in front view and

4 shows a side sectional view of the reaction cell of FIG. 3 along the line IV-IV of FIG. 3,

Fig. 5 shows the reaction cell of Fig. 1 with an integrated fuel cell and

FIG. 6 shows the reaction cell of FIG. 5 in an embodiment modified from FIG. 1 with three pairs of electrodes and three fuel cells in a side sectional view.

1 has a housing 1 which is closed on all sides and has two gas outlet openings 1a, 1b

KN / be 031037 O and an irradiation window 2. The irradiation window consists of a UV-transparent material, for example quartz glass, which advantageously also has an anti-reflective layer. The light L from an external light source, preferably sunlight, can enter the housing through the incident window 2. The housing 1 is filled with an aqueous electrolyte 3, in the present case distilled water (aqua bidest). A pair of electrodes, consisting of a first electrode 4 made of a doped semiconductor and a second electrode 5 made of a metal, is immersed in the electrolyte 3. In the present case, the first electrode 4 consists of an n-doped plate-shaped Ti0 ₂ crystal, while the second electrode 5 consists of a platinum layer which is vapor-deposited onto the Ti0 ₂ crystal on one side, so that there is a flat contact between the two electrodes 4, 5 consists. The pair of electrodes is arranged in the reaction cell 1 such that the non-vaporized surface 4a of the first electrode is irradiated by the light L incident in the reaction cell 1 and the cell is divided into two chambers A, B which are connected to one another in a liquid-conducting manner.

At the interface I between the first electrode 4 and the electrolyte 3, an electrical field is formed in the n-doped TiO 2 crystal of the first electrode due to the migration of electrons in the electrolyte. At the same time, there is an ohmic contact at boundary layer II between the semiconductor and the evaporated platinum layer, so that a free exchange of charge carriers is possible here. Will the

KN / be 031037 O Surface 4a of the first electrode 4 now irradiated with light, electron-hole pairs are formed in the entire semiconductor crystal of the first electrode. While almost all of the crystal disappears through recombination, the electrons are separated from the holes in the area of boundary layer I, where the electric field acts.

While the electrons in the conduction band of the semiconductor flow into the interior of the crystal in the direction of the second electrode, the holes remain at boundary layer I and there oxidize the oxygen contained in the water molecules to oxygen gas according to the reaction equation:

H ₂ 0 + 2h ⁺ - » ₂ + 2H ⁺

The electrons, on the other hand, pass through the boundary layer II between the first and second electrodes and reduce the hydrogen ions (protons) to hydrogen gas at the boundary layer III of the second electrode 5 to the electrolyte 3:

2H ⁺ + 2e ^~ -> H ₂

For this purpose, the hydrogen ions, which combine with neutral water molecules to form positively charged oxonium ions H ₃ 0 ⁺ , have to migrate through the electrolyte 3 from the boundary layer I to the boundary layer III, which is easily possible due to the liquid-conducting connection between the chambers A, B. , The gases formed in the photoelectrochemical reaction, hydrogen and oxygen, can then escape separately from the reaction cell via the gas outlet openings 1a, 1b and are stored in gas stores (not shown)

KN / be 031037 O directed. Here, as can be seen in FIG. 1, mixing of the gases is excluded.

Not shown is a reaction cell with a pair of electrodes, the first electrode of which consists of an n-doped semiconductor and the second electrode of which is made of a p-doped semiconductor. An electric field is formed at each of the boundary layers of electrolyte-n-semiconductor, pn-layer and p-semiconductor-electrolyte, which leads to a step-like band bending over the entire width of the pair of electrodes. In the area of the fields, electron-hole pairs formed by the incident radiation can be separated in the manner described above, the electrons migrating to the surface of the second electrode and the holes to the surface of the first electrode.

The reaction cell shown in FIG. 2 likewise has a housing 1 which is closed on all sides and a side radiation window 2 and is filled with water as the electrolyte 3. In contrast to the reaction cell in FIG. 1, the cell in FIG. 2 has three pairs of electrodes 6, 7, 8, the first electrodes 9, 10, 11 of the three pairs of electrodes 6, 7, 8 being made of different semiconductor materials, namely n Ti0 ₂ , n-SrTi0 ₃ and n-GaAs exist. The second electrodes 12, 13, 14 of the electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 each consist of a thin platinum layer that is vapor-deposited onto the first electrode 9, 10, 11. The electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 divide the reaction cell into a total of four chambers C, D, E, F, which are connected to one another in a liquid-conducting manner, each chamber having a gas outlet opening lc, ld, le, lf

KN / be 031037 O assigned. In addition, electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 are arranged one behind the other in the direction of incidence of the light, the first and second electrodes of the electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 each being opposite one another. In other words, the middle pair of electrodes 7 is arranged mirror-inverted with respect to the outer pairs of electrodes 6, 8.

The same electrochemical processes take place on the three electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 as in the case of the electrode pair of the reaction cell of FIG. at the respective first electrodes 9, 10, 11 the oxygen contained in the water molecules is oxidized to oxygen gas, while hydrogen gas is formed at the respective second electrodes 12, 13, 14. The layer thicknesses of the electrodes of the first and second pair of electrodes 6, 7 must be chosen to be sufficiently small so that the light radiated into the cell partially penetrates the cell and is finally completely absorbed in the third pair of electrodes 8.

The particular advantage of the reaction cell shown in FIG. 2 is that due to the different bandgaps of the semiconductor materials of the first electrodes 9, 10, 11 of the electrode pairs 6, 7, 8, the light radiated into the cell in each electrode pair only in a certain one Spectral range is absorbed and converted into reaction energy, so that in total a very wide spectral range is used for the photoelectrochemical reaction and thus the reaction cell with a significantly higher efficiency than

KN / be 031037 O a cell equipped with only one pair of electrodes can work.

Due to the appropriately chosen arrangement of the electrode pairs 6, 7, 8 in the cell, in which the middle electrode pair 7 is arranged mirror-inverted with respect to the other two, only one type of gas is produced in each of the different reaction chambers C, D, E, F, namely oxygen gas in chambers C and E or hydrogen gas in chambers D and F, so that there is no risk of gas mixing.

The construction example of the reaction cell according to the invention shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 has a substantially cuboid housing 15, which is made of an opaque material, preferably aluminum, stainless steel, nickel, brass, copper or gold. The housing 15 comprises an approximately cubic inner reaction space which is open on one side to the outside. This opening is tightly closed by an irradiation window 16. The window is transparent for visible light and especially for UV radiation. It is therefore preferably made of quartz glass, plexiglass, ZnSe, ZnS, borosilicate glass, MgF ₂ and sapphire. Within the reaction space, a pair of electrodes is held in a holding arm 15g which extends vertically downward from the top of this space, the pair of electrodes being surrounded by an insulating layer, not shown, which prevents electrical contact between the electrodes 17, 18 and the holding arm 15g. The pair of electrodes is composed of a first electrode 17, which preferably consists of an n-doped TiO 2 crystal, and one thereon

KN / be 031037 O evaporated platinum layer together as a second electrode 18. The holding arm 15g receiving the pair of electrodes is arranged in the reaction space in such a way that, together with the pair of electrodes, it divides the space into two essentially identical chambers G, H. Furthermore, the housing has bores 15a, 15b running from the top of the reaction space to the top of the housing, into which bores 15c, 15d are inserted in a sealed manner. Gases which are produced in the chambers G, H can flow through these into gas reservoirs (not shown). The gas lines 15c, 15d can expediently be closed in a gas-tight manner by valves 15e, 15f, in order to avoid contamination of the reaction space when the reaction cell is being transported.

If the reaction space of the reaction cell is filled with water and light is radiated into the reaction space, the photoelectrochemical reaction described in detail above takes place, in the chamber G on the surface of the semiconducting first electrode 17 for the formation of oxygen gas and in the chamber H on the surface of the second electrode 18 to form hydrogen gas.

5 has a pair of electrodes 23, consisting of a first electrode 24 made of n-doped TiO ₂ and a second electrode 25 made of a vapor-deposited platinum layer. The pair of electrodes which divides the reaction cell into two chambers I, J is fastened to the lower inner surface of the housing 22 of the reaction cell by means of a holding arm, not shown, which does not allow liquid exchange, in particular ion exchange, between the two chambers I, J

KN / be 031037 O with special needs. A radiation window 22a is also laterally integrated in the housing.

An anode-cathode arrangement 27 designed as a fuel cell is provided above the pair of electrodes 23. The fuel cell is designed as a low-temperature fuel cell and comprises a cathode 28, an anode 29 and a proton-compatible membrane 30 arranged between them, preferably made of a perfluorinated plastic with a thickness of approximately 0.1 mm. The cathode 28 and the anode 29 are connected via an external, i.e. Arranged outside the reaction cell, circuit 31 conductively connected to one another. An electrical consumer 32, for example an incandescent lamp or an electric motor, is integrated in the circuit 31. The reaction cell is preferably filled with water as the electrolyte 26 to such an extent that the pair of electrodes 23 is completely immersed in it and the membrane 30 of the fuel cell preferably projects into the electrolyte 26.

When radiation strikes the surface of the first electrode 24, oxygen gas is formed there (chamber I), while hydrogen gas is formed on the surface of the second electrode 25 (chamber J). The gas streams which rise separately in the two chambers I, J then rinse the electrodes 28, 29 of the fuel cell after they have left the electrolyte. Hydrogen is oxidized at the anode 29, giving off its electrons, while the oxygen at the cathode 28 is reduced. The electrons required for this move from the anode 29 to the cathode 28 via the external circuit 31. At the same time, the hydrogen ions migrate

KN / be 031037WO through the membrane 30 and react with the oxygen ions to form water. This emerges from the membrane 30 and thus renews the electrolyte 26 in the reaction cell. The system described establishes a closed cycle in which light energy is converted into electrical energy.

The reaction cell filled with water 43 as an electrolyte according to FIG. 6 comprises a total of three electrode pairs 34, 35, 36 and three fuel cells 37, 38, 39 arranged in alternating order. Each fuel cell has an external circuit 42 with an electrical consumer. The function of this cell will be explained using the example of the fuel cell 37 and the two adjacent electrode pairs 34, 35:

Due to the light falling through the window 41 obliquely from above onto the first electrode 34a (n-doped semiconductor) of the electrode pair 34, oxygen gas is generated thereon, while hydrogen gas is generated at the second electrode 34b (metal). The oxygen produced hits the cathode 37c of the fuel cell 37, where it is reduced. At the same time, hydrogen gas is produced on the second electrode 35b of the pair of electrodes 35 and is oxidized on the anode 37a of the fuel cell 37. The ionized hydrogen travels through the membrane 37b of the fuel cell 37 and reacts with the oxygen of the cathode to form water, which renews the electrolyte supply 43.

KN / be 031037 O The hydrogen generated at the second electrode 34b of the pair of electrodes 34 is passed through the ring line 40 to the other side of the reaction cell, where it is oxidized at the anode 39a of the fuel cell 39 and reacts with oxygen to form water.

This multiple arrangement creates a particularly powerful system which, depending on the number of fuel cell units used, provides several power sources which can also be connected in parallel.

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Claims

P AT E N T AN S P RÜ C H E

Reaction cell for the photoelectrochemical production of hydrogen gas with a housing (1, 15) filled with an aqueous electrolyte (3), with a pair of electrodes, consisting of a first electrode (4, 17) immersed in the electrolyte (3) made of a doped semiconductor and one immersed in the electrolyte (3), with the first electrode (4, 17) electrically connected connected second electrode (5, 18) made of a metal or a semiconductor doped opposite to the first electrode, and with a light source (L) irradiating the pair of electrodes , characterized in that the electrodes (4, 17, 5, 18) are in surface contact with one another, that the pair of electrodes divides the reaction cell into two chambers (A, G, B, H), the chambers (A, G, B, H ) are connected to one another in an ion-conducting manner, and that the housing (1, 15) has at least one gas outlet opening (la, 15a, lb, 15b).

Reaction cell according to claim 1, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the electrodes (4, 17, 5, 18) on the light-facing side of the first electrode (4, 17) are in flat contact with each other.

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3. Reaction cell according to claim 1 or 2, that is, the second electrode (5, 18) is evaporated onto one side of the first electrode (4, 17).

4. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 3, where the electrodes (4, 17, 5, 18) are each flat, in particular plate-shaped, are formed.

5. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 4, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t d a s s the sunlight serves as a light source (L).

6. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 5, where the housing (1, 15) of the reaction cell consists of a light-transparent material, in particular plexiglass.

7. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 5, where the housing (1, 15) of the reaction cell consists of an opaque material and has a window (2, 16) for light irradiation.

8. Reaction cell according to claim 7, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t that the window (2, 16) consists of a UV-transparent material.

9. Reaction cell according to claim 8, characterized in that the UV-transparent material is a material from the group of quartz glass, plexiglass, ZnSe, ZnS, borosilicate glass, MgF ₂ and sapphire.

10. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 9, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the housing (1, 15) of the cell is closed on all sides except for at least one gas outlet opening (la, 15a, lb, 15b).

11. Reaction cell according to claim 10, where the at least one gas outlet opening (la, 15a, lb, 15b) can be closed gas-tight by a valve (15e, 15f).

12. Reaction cell according to claim 10 or 11, where the two chambers (A, G, B, H) formed by the pair of electrodes in the cell each have a gas outlet opening (la, 15a, lb, 15b).

13. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 12, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the reaction cell has a heat exchanger.

14. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 13, where the reaction cell is operated with water as an electrolyte (3).

15. Reaction cell according to claim 14, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, d a s s

KN / be 031037 O an antifreeze is added to the water.

16. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that the first electrode (4, 17) made of a semiconductor from the group Ti0 ₂ , SrTi0 ₃ , Ge, Si, Cu ₂ S, GaAs, GaP, ZnO, W0 ₃ , CdS, MoS ₂ , CdSeS, Sn0 ₂ , SiC, Pb ₃ 0 ₄ , CdSe.

17. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 16, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the semiconductor is n-doped.

18. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 17, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t that the semiconductor is p-doped.

19. Reaction cell according to claim 16, characterized in that the irradiated surface of the first electrode is designed as a (110) or (100) crystal surface of a Ti0 ₂ crystal.

20. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 19, where a dye is adsorbed on the surface of the first electrode.

21. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 20, where a platinum cluster is adsorbed onto the surface of the first electrode.

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22. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 21, characterized in that the second electrode (5, 18) made of a metal from the group Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Os, Ir, Pt, Au, Al, Cr, Cu, Ni , Mo, Pb, Ta, W.

23. Reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 22, characterized in that a plurality of electrode pairs (6, 7, 8) are provided, the respective first electrodes (9, 10, 11) of the electrode pairs (6, 7, 8) made of different semiconductor materials consist.

24. Reaction cell according to claim 23, characterized in that the electrode pairs (6, 7, 8) are arranged one behind the other in the direction of incidence of the light, the first and second electrodes (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14) of the electrode pairs ( 6, 7, 8) face each other.

25. Reaction cell according to claim 24, characterized in that the respective first electrode (9, 10, 11) of the electrode pairs (6, 7, 8) arranged one behind the other in the irradiation direction is one opposite the first electrode (9, 10, 11) of the one upstream in each case Electrode pair has a smaller band gap.

26. Device for converting light energy into electrical energy with a reaction cell according to one of claims 1 to 25,

KN / be 031037WO characterized in that an anode-cathode arrangement (27) is provided in the reaction cell or in a further cell connected to the reaction cell via at least one gas line, the anode (29) and the cathode (28) being connected via an external circuit (31 ), to which an electrical consumer (32) can be connected, are conductively connected to one another, and the anode (29) and the cathode (28) are arranged in such a way that they are connected to the first and second electrodes (24, 25) gases produced around the pair of electrodes (23).

27. The apparatus of claim 26, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the anode-cathode arrangement (27) is designed as a fuel cell.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, d a d u r c h g e k e n n z e i c h n e t, that the fuel cell is designed as a low-temperature fuel cell.

29. The device according to claim 27 or 28, characterized in that in the reaction cell a plurality of electrode pairs (34, 35, 36) and a plurality of fuel cells (37, 38, 39) are arranged next to one another in an alternating order, with the respective outer circuit (42) the fuel cells (37, 38, 39) an external consumer can be connected.

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0. The device according to claim 26, wherein the anode-cathode arrangement is arranged in a further cell and is designed as a galvanic cell,

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