Photovoltaic hydrogen production and energy storage technology development

How efficient is solar hydrogen production?

The most efficient solar hydrogen production schemes, which couple solar cells to electrolysis systems, reach solar-to-hydrogen (STH) energy conversion efficiencies of 30% at a laboratory scale3.

Can photovoltaic-driven electrolyzers produce hydrogen?

Gibson et al. [ 23, 24] evaluated the performance of the photovoltaic-driven electrolyzer system for hydrogen production and it showed that the efficiency of the hybrid system could be optimized to 12.4%, but the work did not present a compete conversion process from solar energy to electric energy.

Can solar hydrogen production be scaled?

Our findings demonstrate that scaling of solar hydrogen production via photocatalytic overall water splitting to a size of 100 m 2 —by far the largest solar hydrogen production unit yet reported to our knowledge—is feasible, with further scaling in principle possible without efficiency degradation.

Can solar cells reduce the cost of PV hydrogen production?

Future technological advances in PV–hydrogen production systems, such as perovskite solar cells (PSCs) and noble metal-free cocatalysts for enhanced photocatalytic H2 production [ 3, 4, 5 ], will play an important role in further reducing the levelized cost of PV hydrogen production.

What are solar-assisted hydrogen production technologies?

Grimm et al. (2020) conducted a techno-economic analysis of two solar-assisted hydrogen production technologies: a photoelectrochemical (PEC) system and its major competitor, a photovoltaic system connected to a conventional water electrolyzer (PV-E system).

Is solar-driven thermochemical conversion a viable hydrogen production route?

Solar-driven thermochemical conversion of low-carbon fossil fuels integrated with PV-driven electrochemical separation offers viable hydrogen production routes that can combine the strengths of solar PV and solar thermal technologies, and make up for the shortcomings of PV-E discussed above.