Project Details
Projekt
Observation and description of bubble formation in electrolysis oxygen electrodes
Subject Area
Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering
Energy Process Engineering
Fluid Mechanics
Energy Process Engineering
Fluid Mechanics
Term
since 2025
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 558290485
Electrodes for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER electrodes) from water are needed in the PEM water electrolysis and many electrochemical CO2 reduction processes. The typical catalysts (Ir, Ru and their oxides) suffer from high costs and limited availability. To reduce the catalyst amounts alternative catalyst coating methods as well as improved catalyst usage by improved mass transport are considered. For both approaches a better fundamental understanding of the oxygen bubble development and the two-phase flow in the electrode is needed. The objective of this proposal is to unravel details of the complex dynamics of the bubble formation, bubble growth and bubble detachment as well as the convection in OER electrodes. For model electrodes and application-oriented electrodes, partly featuring nanostructured surfaces and reduced catalysator loadings, we implement an optical measurement of bubble development and liquid phase mass transport. The measurements are performed with the microscopic measurement equipment of the DFG-Großgeräteförderung MUST and a new micro light-sheet optic. We correlate the analysis of the optical database with the electrochemical measurement and use these results to formulate empirical models as a base for further OER electrode developments. The proposed project unites preliminary work of the applicants considering OER electrodes with low Ir loading, oxygen and flow measurements in multiphase flows, empirical modelling of electrochemical systems as well as cell design and characterization of electrochemical energy converters.
DFG Programme
Research Grants
