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Updated: Mar 13, 2026
Hydrogen Production and Utilization in a Membrane Reactor
Published on: March 10, 2023
Regulation of organic molecule-water interface reactions: performance study of an aminotriazole
Dandan Zhang1, Yuqiang Ma1, Meng Li1
1Xi'an Key Laboratory of Special Energetic Materials, School of Chemical Engineering, Northwest University, Xi'an 710069, China.
Abstract:
Integrating thermodynamically-favorable small molecules oxidation with water electrolysis offers an effective way to realize energy-efficient H2 production and obtain value-added chemicals as well. In this study, we report an energy-saving H2 production system utilizing thermodynamically favorable 3,5-diamino-1H-1,2,4-triazole (DAT) electrooxidation reaction (DATOR) as an oxygen evolution reaction-alternative process of low-energy-consumption for H2 production. At the anode, value-added 3,3'-diamino-5,5'-azo-1,2,4-triazole (DAAT) energetic chemical and H2 are obtained. The carbon cloth-loaded NiS2 (CC@NiS2) substrate and doped with Ru nanoparticles (NPs) cathode could modulate the electronic structure, resulting in a hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) overpotential as low as 34.4 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm-2. Density Functional Theory calculations show that the synergistic effect of the Ru NPs and NiS2 significantly enhanced the alkaline HER kinetics. Benefitting from the DATOR and high hydrogen atom economy to convert H of DAT substrate to H2 via Tafel pathway, the assembled CC@NiS2/Ru NPs||CF@CuO NWs (CF: copper foam) two-electrode coupling system only requires 1.04 V to drive a current density of 10 mA cm-2, and greatly reduces the energy consumption by 36.6% for H2 production compared with conventional water electrolysis, avoiding the traditional hazardous synthesis condition of DAAT. Furthermore, anion-exchange membrane electrolyzer tests show superior long-term stability of 250 h at a high current density of 0.5 A cm-2. This study not only provides a new idea for the sustainable electrosynthesis of energy-containing materials, but also demonstrates the broad application prospects of electrocatalytic coupling systems in the co-production of clean energy and high-value chemicals.
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