Physical Modeling of Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Production Devices

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© 2015 American Chemical Society (ACS). http://pubs.acs.org/page/policy/articlesonrequest/index.html. This document is the unedited author's version of a Submitted Work that was subsequently accepted for publication in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, copyright © American Chemical Society after peer review. To access the final edited and published work see http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b04764.
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School of Science | A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä

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en

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21747-21766

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The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Volume 119, Issue 38

Abstract

Solar-powered water splitting with photoelectrochemical (PEC) devices is a promising method to simultaneously harvest and store solar energy at a large scale. Highly efficient small prototype PEC devices reported recently demonstrate a move from basic material research toward design and engineering of complete devices and systems. The increased interest in engineering calls for a better understanding about the operational details of PEC devices at different length scales. The relevant physical phenomena and the properties of typical materials are well-known for separate device components, but their interaction in a complete PEC cell has received less attention. Coupled physical models are useful for studying these interactions and understanding the device operation as a whole and for optimizing the devices. We review the central physical processes in solar-powered water splitting cells and the physical models used in their theoretical simulations. Our focus is in particular on how different physical processes have been coupled together to construct device models and how different electrode and device geometries have been taken into account in them. Reflecting on the literature we discuss future opportunities and challenges in the modeling of PEC cells.

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Kemppainen, Erno & Halme, Janne & Lund, Peter. 2015. Physical Modeling of Photoelectrochemical Hydrogen Production Devices. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C. Volume 119, Issue 38. 21747-21766. DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b04764.