Solar Fuels

10Solar‑Driven H₂ Production in PVE Systems

Zaki N. Zahran^1,2*, Yuta Tsubonouchi¹ and Masayuki Yagi^1†

¹Department of Materials Science and Technology, Faculty of Engineering, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan

²Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt

Abstract

Water splitting driven by solar energy is an important technology for carbonneutral and sustainable hydrogen (H₂) production to replace the fossil fuels. This chapter focuses on photovoltaic-electrolyzer (PVE) systems, consisting of photovoltaic (PV) cells connected by wires with electrolyzers equipped with an anode and a cathode in an electrolyte solution as one of the most promising approaches for solar-driven water splitting. The principles and the mechanisms of solar-driven water splitting in the PVE systems are exposited to understand the performance of the PVE systems. Recent advances on the PVE systems in the last decade are reviewed with classification according to types of the PV cell materials to highlight the efficient PVE systems with insights into the important factors. Finally, a future prospective is mentioned to achieve practical use of PVE systems for solar-driven water splitting.

Keywords: Hydrogen production, solar-driven water splitting, photovoltaic cells, electrolyzers-solar hydrogen production wired photovoltaic-electrolyzer

10.1 Introduction

Recently, the inevitable depletion of fossil fuels including oil, coal, and natural gas and the huge emissions of global warming CO₂ gas in our ...