Research Highlights from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Working Group on Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Production

Abstract

The US Department of Energy (DOE) hydrogen production research and development portfolio focuses on low-cost, highly efficient and environmentally friendly production technologies based on diverse, domestic resources. Within the DOE, work on hydrogen production technologies integrates basic and applied research, as well as technology development and demonstration. The integration of basic and applied research is of particular importance in "transformational" production technologies, such as photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen production, where scientific advances are needed for achieving the long-term DOE performance and cost targets. In the case of renewable hydrogen production via PEC solar water splitting, high solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency has been demonstrated to date on the laboratory scale, but only with high-cost, low-durability material systems. In order to identify and develop the appropriate highefficiency, low-cost, durable and scalable PEC material systems, research and development efforts in the DOE EERE (Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy) Office have keyed in on specific focus areas, including: 1) the engineering of solar energy absorption properties in PEC semiconductor materials, such as the bandgap lowering in stable metal oxides as well as bandgap raising in nanostructured sulfide catalysts; 2) the engineering of PEC solid-liquid interfaces for optimal reaction rates and stability, such as surface nitrogenation in III-V semiconductor systems; 3) the standardization of PEC measurement and reporting methodologies, using national and international peer-review process, for facilitating research progress; and 4) the design and analysis of integrated PEC device and system configurations for scalable hydrogen production. As described in this presentation, all of these research and development areas rely heavily on collaborative efforts among academia, industry and national laboratory partners, utilizing state of the art resources in materials theory, synthesis, characterization and analysis. The collaboration extends nationally among research programs supported by the DOE EERE as well as Office of Science; and internationally via networking through the International Energy Agency's Hydrogen Implementation Agreement Annex-26.