Research Projects
4. Water Oxidation Catalysts for Bio-Inspired Photoelectrochemical Cells
With global oil supplies becoming increasingly inaccessible and atmospheric carbon levels rising at an alarming rate, development of a sustainable alternative transport fuel is essential for future economic and ecological stability. Hydrogen (H2) is a favorable alternative due to its dynamic application potential and its low atmospheric impact. Ideally hydrogen would be produced from the splitting of water. However, the splitting of water to form hydrogen is energy intensive (typically achieved by electrolysis) and is thus limited by cost. With most of the worlds electricity generated from fossil fuels this process has detrimental atmospheric consequences. One of the most promising renewable sources of hydrogen is the photolysis of water. To date photolysis of water has been limited by finding an efficient water photo-oxidizing catalyst.
The aim of this project is to create an efficient water oxidation catalyst by combining the oxidizing features of photosynthetic enzymes with the light harvesting power of dye-sensitized solar cells. Paired with a proton reducing catalytic cathode, we hope to development of a photo-electrochemical cell capable of producing pure H2 and O2 from water and sunlight. This project is being undertaken in collaboration with the Professor Dismukes group from Princeton University and Dr Swiegers from the CSIRO Division of Molecular Science, Melbourne.
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