Obtaining platinum-free oxygen reduction catalysts through biomass valorization: a case study of peat
Date
2023-07-17
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Abstract
Energiakriis - turvas ahju?
Eestil on plaan ehitada tulevaste energiakriiside ennetamiseks ligi 10 GW võimsusega tuuleparke. See rahuldab riigi 1.6 GW energianõudluse tipu, kuid ülejäävat energiat on vaja salvestada. Näiteks saab energia ülejäägist valmistada tuleviku kütuseks tituleeritud vesinikku. Vesinikust uuesti elektri tootmiseks on vaja elektrokeemilisi seadmeid, mida nimetatakse kütuseelementideks. Kaasaegsed kütuseelemendid vajavad efektiivseks töötamiseks hinnalisi ja haruldasi plaatinakatalüsaatoreid, kuid katalüsaatoreid saab valmistada ka oluliselt jätkusuutlikumatest lähteainetest nagu näiteks eestimaisest turbast.
Tartu ülikooli keemia instituudi füüsikalise keemia õppetooli doktorant Patrick Teppor keskendub oma doktoritöös eestimaise turba väärindamisele. Turba põletamise asemel ahjus kuumtöödeldakse seda hapnikuvabas keskkonnas koos erinevate lähteainetega ja saadakse söega sarnane aktiivne katalüsaatori pulber, mida saab rakendada kütusseelemendis. Teadustöö tulemusena valmistati madala väärtusega turbast uudne käsnalaadse struktuuriga katalüsaator, mille üliväikesed nanopoorid on ligikaudu tuhat korda väiksemad kui inimeste juuksekarvad. Põhjalikust analüüsist selgus, et just taolised nanopoorid on katalüsaatoris võtmetähtsusega ja töö raames töötati välja meetod tulevikumaterjali valmistamiseks.
From Wind Energy to Hydrogen: Estonian Peat's Role in Fueling the Future Estonia is developing wind parks with a total power capacity of 10 GW to prevent future energy crises. This will satisfy the country's peak energy demand of 1.6 GW, but the excess energy needs to be stored. One solution is harnessing this surplus energy to produce the fuel of the future - hydrogen. Converting hydrogen back into electricity can be done with electrochemical devices known as fuel cells. Modern fuel cells rely on expensive and scarce platinum catalysts to speed up the energy conversion process, but alternative catalysts can also be fabricated from more sustainable resources, such as Estonian peat. Patrick Teppor, a doctoral student in the chair of physical chemistry at the Institute of Chemistry, University of Tartu, demonstrates in his research how to valorize abundant Estonian peat. Instead of simply burning the peat as a fuel, it is heat-treated in an oxygen-free environment with different precursors resulting in a charcoal-like active catalyst powder suitable for fuel cells. The developed novel catalyst has a sponge-like structure and nanopores that are approximately a thousand times smaller than a human hair. These nanopores play a crucial role in the catalyst and thus a method for producing a future material was developed in the course of the work.
From Wind Energy to Hydrogen: Estonian Peat's Role in Fueling the Future Estonia is developing wind parks with a total power capacity of 10 GW to prevent future energy crises. This will satisfy the country's peak energy demand of 1.6 GW, but the excess energy needs to be stored. One solution is harnessing this surplus energy to produce the fuel of the future - hydrogen. Converting hydrogen back into electricity can be done with electrochemical devices known as fuel cells. Modern fuel cells rely on expensive and scarce platinum catalysts to speed up the energy conversion process, but alternative catalysts can also be fabricated from more sustainable resources, such as Estonian peat. Patrick Teppor, a doctoral student in the chair of physical chemistry at the Institute of Chemistry, University of Tartu, demonstrates in his research how to valorize abundant Estonian peat. Instead of simply burning the peat as a fuel, it is heat-treated in an oxygen-free environment with different precursors resulting in a charcoal-like active catalyst powder suitable for fuel cells. The developed novel catalyst has a sponge-like structure and nanopores that are approximately a thousand times smaller than a human hair. These nanopores play a crucial role in the catalyst and thus a method for producing a future material was developed in the course of the work.
Description
Väitekirja elektrooniline versioon ei sisalda publikatsioone
Keywords
catalysts, oxygen, reduction (chemistry), peat, synthesis