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Fabrication of CuYO 2 Nanofibers by Electrospinning and Applied to Hydrogen Harvest.

Kai-Chun HsuArjunan Karthi KeyanChin-Wei HungSubramanian SakthinathanChung-Lun YuLiangdong FanKaruppiah NagarajFang-Yu FanYung-Kang ShanPo-Chou Chen
Published in: Materials (Basel, Switzerland) (2022)
Hydrogen can be employed as an alternative renewable energy source in response to climate change, global warming, and the energy problem. Methanol gas steam reforming (SRM) is the major method used in industry to produce hydrogen. In the SRM process, the catalyst nature offers benefits such as low cost, simplicity, and quickness. In this work, delafossite copper yttrium oxide (CuYO 2 ) nanofibers were successfully prepared by electrospinning. The prepared CuYO 2 nanofibers have different physical and chemical properties including thermoelectric behavior. The electrospinning method was used to produce as-spun fibers and annealed in an air atmosphere to form Cu 2 Y 2 O 5 fibers; then, Cu 2 Y 2 O 5 fibers were annealed in a nitrogen atmosphere to form CuYO 2 nanofibers. X-ray diffraction studies and thermogravimetric and transmission electron microscope analysis confirmed the formation of CuYO 2 nanofibers. The CuYO 2 nanofibers were applied to methanol steam reforming for hydrogen production to confirm their catalytic ability. The CuYO 2 nanofibers exhibited high catalytic activity and the best hydrogen production rate of 1967.89 mL min -1 g-cat -1 at 500 °C. The highly specific surface area of CuYO 2 nanofibers used in steam reforming reactions could have significant economic and industrial implications. The performance of these CuYO 2 nanofibers in hydrogen generation could be very important in industries with a global economic impact. Furthermore, the H 2 production performance increases at higher reaction temperatures.
Keyphrases
  • climate change
  • low cost
  • visible light
  • risk assessment
  • room temperature
  • heavy metals
  • wastewater treatment
  • carbon dioxide
  • tissue engineering
  • highly efficient
  • human health