Modeling and simulation for photoelectrochemical CO2 utilization

A two-dimensional numerical model for a photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell.for CO2 utilization and fuel production was developed using COMSOL Multiphysics and validated with published experimental data. The model couples computational fluid dynamics with electrochemical kinetics to account for the complex interactions inside the PEC driven by light absorption operating at the Shockyley-Queisser limit. Charge and species conservation, fluid flow and electrochemical characteristics are studied. The flow rate of CO2 is found to be the factor affecting the cell performance. Parametric study for operating conditions is necessary in future work. (C) 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.