Hydrogen production in a microbial electrolysis cell with nickel-based gas diffusion cathodes

Gas diffusion cathodes with Ni alloy and Ni catalysts manufactured by chemical deposition were tested for H-2 production in a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC). In a continuous flow MEC, multi-component cathodes containing Ni, Mo, Cr, and Fe, at a total catalyst load of 1 mg cm(-2) on carbon support demonstrated stable H-2 production at rates of 2.8-3.7 L L-R(-1) d(-1) with only 5% methane in the gas stream. Furthermore, a Ni-only gas diffusion cathode, with a Ni load of 0.6 mg cm(-2), demonstrated a H-2 production rate of 4.1 L L-R(-1) d(-1). Overall, H-2 production was found to be proportional to the Ni load implying that inexpensive gas diffusion cathodes prepared by chemical deposition of Ni can be successfully used for continuous production Of H-2 in a MEC. Crown Copyright (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.