Question:
Is this "Bash session" group, or do issues truely come to light?
In the event that true topics can be discussed, I am attempting to research
the electrolysis of water. Can someone help redirect my efforts to good
books or websites that cover the energy ratio, voltage required, or any
useful data that I can quantify to see how truely inefficient it is to
produce H and O with electricity?
Thanks in advance
Answer:
The best and most accurate info is in the INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN
ENERGY.
Tutorials and other resources appear at http://www.tinaja.com/h2gas01.html
A distinction of three different efficiency costs must be drawn.
Lab, real world, and true burdended cost.
In the lab electrolysis accepts a dc voltage in the 1.45 volt region.
Efficiencies can theoretically be as good as one sixth endothermic with
one-sixth of the input energy coming from ambient heat sources. At that level,
hydrogen production is uselessly low.
As the voltage is raised, hydrogen efficiency becomes first thermoneutral and
then exothermic. Any deviation whatsoever from pure dc (such as pulses or
halfwave ac waveforms) significantly degrades the efficiency.
Properly designed real world hydrogen generators offer an 62 percent
efficiency.
This is unable to compete with methane reformation. For this reason,
electrolysis is rarely used to generate commercial quantities of hydrogen.
True costs have to include the equipment amortization, total input energies,
and the inefficiencies of generating the electricity in the first place. A true
all-costs electrolysis system efficiency over ten percent appears extremely
unlikey.
