Can UVC Light and Electrolysis Efficiently Split Water?

[xArcherx]

I'm working on a project to split water. The idea is to have a spherical container of aluminum with the inside given a mirror finish. A germicidal light is secured inside and the container is filled with water.

The UVC light should have enough energy to break the bonds (although I searched the internet and couldn't find a solid answer on the energy required to break the HO bonds) especially when the light is reflected back onto itself.

However I know this won't actually cause hydrogen and oxygen gas to form but instead it will cause the water to undergo a cyclic process of bonds breaking and reforming involving the temporary formation of hydrogen peroxide.

So that is where the electrolysis comes in. Electrolysis is a wasteful means of splitting water where current will simply pass through, some of the energy simply heats the water, then finally you get the energy that breaks the bonds and even a bit more to form the gases.

My hypothesis is that once the UVC light breaks the bonds creating the ions, a much smaller current is used to pull these ions to the associating electrode (before any bond cycling can occur) where they pick up/drop off the necessary electrons to form the gases. That is once the bonds are broken, hydrogen ions will be pulled to the cathode where the ions pick up their missing electrons, come together to form hydrogen gas, and float to a collecting point. Oxygen ions will get pulled to the anode where they dump off the excess electrons, form oxygen gas, and float to a collection point.

I'm hoping that 1 amp per second can produce 1/2 a mole of hydrogen gas per second and 1/4 a mole of oxygen gas per second. Provided that no current is required to do the bond breaking and that no current wastefully spans across from electrode to electrode without contributing to the process. This would mean that a small force (1 volt) can produce a large quantity of gas provided that the resistance is low (.01) resulting in a high current (10 amps).

So what I'm looking for is some input, I would like to know the obstacles I may face before I get to them.

Thnx

 

[Norrit4ever]

Have you had any success with your prototype? I came up with the same idea(feb2008) and built a prototype out of aluminum but I found the metal to corrode very fast. I was also losing any gas I produced from a bad design.

I have almost finished my new cell with stainless steel.

I am very interested in any progress you have made



Norrit4ever

 

[oswaler]

Thank you for sharing your project and hypothesis. It sounds like you are on the right track in terms of using both photo and electro-dissociation to split water into its component gases. The use of a germicidal UVC light is a good idea as it has enough energy to break the bonds of water molecules. However, as you mentioned, the energy required to break the HO bonds may vary and may also depend on the specific conditions of your experiment (such as temperature and pressure). You may need to do some additional research or experimentation to determine the exact energy needed in your setup.

In terms of the electrolysis process, it is true that it is a wasteful means of splitting water as some of the energy is lost as heat. However, by using a smaller current and optimizing the resistance, as you suggested, you may be able to increase the efficiency of the process. It is also important to consider the materials used for the electrodes as they can affect the rate of electrolysis.

One potential obstacle you may face is the formation of hydrogen peroxide during the bond cycling process. This can affect the purity of the hydrogen and oxygen gases produced and may require additional steps to purify them. Additionally, the efficiency of the process may also be affected by other factors such as the purity of the water used and the efficiency of the UVC light.

Overall, your project seems promising and it will be important to carefully consider and address any potential obstacles that may arise. I wish you all the best in your research and experimentation.