Frontiers in Energy Research (Mar 2021)

Immobilization of Iron Minerals on a Layered Silicate for Enhancing its Solar Photocatalytic Activity toward H2 Production

  • Hamza El-Hosainy,
  • Hamza El-Hosainy,
  • Rafat Tahawy,
  • Mohamed Esmat,
  • Maged El-Kemary,
  • Yusuke Ide

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2021.630535
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9

Abstract

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The development of efficient and cost-effective solar photocatalysts capable of producing hydrogen from formic acid as a hydrogen storage medium is still a challenging issue. Herein, we report that iron minerals, ferric iron hydroxy sulfates (FHS), immobilized on a natural layered silicate, magadiite, can be used as a photocatalyst to produce hydrogen from formic acid under irradiation with solar simulator. The material exhibits the hydrogen production rate of 470 μmol g−1 h−1, which is considerably higher than that obtained on other iron minerals and comparable to that obtained on precious metal-based photocatalyst ever reported. The present result may open a way to design efficient photocatalyst for hydrogen production from formic acid in an economically and environmentally friendly way.

Keywords