Environmentally sustainable green hydrogen production
Electrochemistry, Green Hydrogen, Renewable Energy
The problems of access to water, energy and food tend to worsen in the coming decades as a result of the increase in the world population, which is expected to reach 9.7 billion people in 2050. The solutions to these problems are the treatment of contaminated water and the use of renewable energy sources. However, a high number of synthetic organic compounds, such as industrial chemicals, pesticides, dyes and pharmaceuticals are released daily into many wastewaters and enter the aquatic environment in different ways, including the direct disposal of industrial effluents and wastewater or from wastewater treatment plants that do not meet their obligations. Electrochemical Advanced Oxidation Processes (EAOPs Electrochemical Advanced Oxidation Processes) have some advantages over AOPs. The addition of chemical reagents is not necessary, as •OH is directly generated by the oxidation of water and contaminants that do not react with the hydroxyl radical can be degraded by EAOPs via direct electron transfer reactions. In addition, the acid boundary layer, which is produced on the surface of the anode due to water oxidation, protonates the HC to H2CO3 and thus prevents the scavenging of hydroxyl radicals associated with HC present in natural waters. From an economic point of view, it is necessary to plan electrolytic devices that make the electrochemical oxidation of organic pollutants coupled with the cathodic hydrogen production a productive and viable process.