How Potassium May Help Boost Hydrogen Production
The use of potassium titanate is extensive across a range of different industries and applications. But a new use may help resolve a major potential problem with an emerging industry, based on the artificial production of clean hydrogen.
New research led by the Institute of Science Tokyo has revealed that potassium is one of the materials that has been used in the enrichment of modified ilmenite oxygen carriers, which leads to a larger rate of production of hydrogen in chemical looping systems while reducing carbon emissions, the Institute of Science Tokyo has announced.
This process involves mixing different materials, which, apart from potassium, also includes calcium, with these altering the composition of ilmenite and, as a result, producing a calcium titanate. This also means more oxide ion diffusion takes place, as well as a greater quantity of hydrogen being extracted as a result of the chemical reaction.
This development is highly promising for its ability to simultaneously produce more hydrogen and capture carbon dioxide, both of which are important in the transition towards carbon-neutrality and clean energy production.
As such, this particular application of potassium may take on a vital and commercially important role. The reason for this is that while burning hydrogen in itself does not produce carbon dioxide, the process of producing it does tend to produce carbon emissions. Any new catalyst that can store the carbon instead will, therefore, be a game-changer.
The work, led by Professor Junichiro Otomo and Dr Zhuang Sun, from the Department of Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Tokyo, was published in the journal Applied Energy.
Among other uses, clean hydrogen has been suggested as a form of automotive fuel, offering a potential alternative to electric vehicles that use lithium-ion batteries.
While electric cars are zero-emission, there is widespread concern that the processes of securing the lithium and other materials, such as cobalt, can be energy-intensive and environmentally damaging.
