Investigation of Hydrogen Production via Black Water Electrolysis

As an alternative to hydrogen production by electrolysis of water, using as raw material waste valorization and organic pollutants in wastewater are crucial issues. In this context, electrolysis of black water, produced as waste in olive oil production and high energy source potential due to the aromatic compounds in its content, was carried out in this study. Parametric studies were carried out by examining the effect of working conditions on hydrogen production. The experiments using a two-chamber electrolysis cell examined the effects of catalytic additive (Fe2+/3+), temperature (26oC-60oC-70oC-80oC), type of electrode (Cu/Cu, Zn/Zn and Pd/Pt) and electrolyte (H2SO4, H3PO4, HCl, C2H2O4 and C2H4O2), membrane and pretreatment applied to the membrane. In the electrolysis of black water with FeSO4 and acidic electrolyte (H2SO4) using a pretreated Nafion XL membrane on the Zn/Zn electrode pair, pure H2 formation at the cathode was determined. Under these conditions, 1.9 mA/cm2 current density was obtained at 1 V potential and room temperature.