HOW TO PRODUCE CHEAP HYDROGEN
There are different modes of hydrogen production. But all those are not cheap and easy. Recently inventors V.Studennikov and G.Kudimov (Moscow, Russia) have found a new effective mode of hydrogen production. It is easy-to-use and very effective. They offer this technology to all investors.
Hydrogen has perspectives as alternative energy source. Its stocks in ocean waters are inexhaustible. Other advantages of hydrogen are relative ecological safety in use, high calorific capacity, acceptability for heat engines without essential change of their designs and others.
The known ways of hydrogen production (on basis of chemistry, thermochemistry, electrolysis and others) are very expensive because of use a fuel (coal, natural gas, petroleum) or electric power. Conventional industrial electrolysis takes about 18...21.6 megajoules of electrical energy per one cubic meter of produced hydrogen, and total energy consumption including production of electrical energy itself is about 50 megajoules per one cubic meter. Accordingly such hydrogen is not cheap, it costs about $2 per one cubic meter.
At once we swim in heat flows supplied by the sun, the earth core and activity of people. The goal is to use these sources of free low-grade heat to produce hydrogen.
Now we have developed conception and its theoretical base to convert directly a heat of any nature in potential chemical energy. This is executed by water decomposition with hydrogen and oxygen output in an electrolyte solution located in strong field created by artifical inertial forces. Therefore in total energy balance of an eletrochemical process used to water decomposition a conventional consumption of electricity is changed by free heat supply from outer source and mechanical energy of inertial field. This conception’s name is gravitational electrolysis.
To realize it we have developed simple high-efficiency devices for production of cheap hydrogen called the Electricity & Hydrogen Generator (EHG) and patented by RST system (International application RU 98/00190 from 10.07.97). It is actuated by a mechanical drive and works in a mode of the thermal pump at normal temperature absorbing heat from enviroment, industrial or transport installations. At water decomposition external mechanical energy supplied may be transformed (up to 80%) into electricity which then used by any user in need of external useful load.
Thereby per each unit of the spent mechanical capacity, from 20 to 88 units of low grade heat are absorbed. This compensates negative thermal effect of chemical reaction of water decomposition. One cubic meter of conditional working volume of the generator operating at optimum mode (at efficiency factor 86...98%) is able to make 3.5 cubic meter of hydrogen and 2.2 megajoules of electrical energy per second. The heat power of EHG unit depending on a demand can be varied from several kilowatts up to 1000 megawatts. The calculation of energy consumption to hydrogen production gives result as 14.42 megajoules per one cubic meter. Because of use in the process free heat the cost of producing one cubic meter of hydrogen is decreased to $0.0038. This is 2.5...3 times cheaper than total cost to produce and transportation the same volume of natural gas.
The broad control range and exceptional specific features of the process allow to use this invention successfully in energetics, all transport kinds, agriculture, communal household , as well in chemistry, concrete production, metallurgy etc.
Physics of EHG’s working process is’nt difficult and is development of known experiments (by Tolman and Steward, 1916). It is known that at solution an electrolyte is dissotiated into iones hydrated by water molecules. Therefore around these hydrated shells with differents strength are created. An energy of interaction between hydrated iones with different signs of charge decreases highly and nears an energy of water molecules’ Brownian motion (at 18° C, Wk = 3/2k× T = 6× 1 0 - 2 1 joules, where k - Boltzmann constant, T - absolute temperature). If a concentrated solution of a dissotiated electrolyte, whose masses of an anion and a cation differ highly, to locate in an artifical inertial field, for example, to rotate it in the EHG’s vessel (a calculated rotation frequency for various electrolytes and features of the device is 1,500...45,000 rev/min), then iones will be separated partially.
Heavy iones affecting each other by own electrical field move to a periphery of the vessel. Thereby their kinetic energy will near an energy of heat motion. For example, for the ion BrO3- with the mass m =21,26× 10- 26 kg at circumferential speed V =330 m× c- 1 (when an internal diameter of the vessel is 0.14 m, rotation frequency is 45,000 rev/min ) kinetic energy will be
W = 0,5mV2 = 11,57× 10- 2 1 joules.
Outer iones will be pressed to the internal surface of the vessel and will generate concentrated electrical bulk charge. Then total centrifugal force affected the aniones pressed to the anode will be break their hydrated shells as these are the weakest. Light iones are less responsible to the gravity and have stronger shells, therefore they cannot give its hydrated molecules of water to the heavy iones. Accordingly light iones will be concentrated above the heavy iones near the vessel axis (near the cathode) forming electrical potential with inverted sign. On the anode free electrones move to the catode by bulk electrical charge of aniones (this is a feature of Faraday cell).
When achieving the minimal (threshold) frequency of the vessel rotation at given electrolyte and given design features when critical electrical potentials on the eletrodes are achievied the charge equalization will be broken. Electrones will move from the cathode and ionize molecules of hydrated shells and these will give charges to the cations. It will be as discharge of “an electrolytic capacitor”. Therefore a discharge of ions with formation of hydrogen on the cathode and oxygen and anode gases (a sediment) on the anode will begin. The electrical current voltage will depend on difference between speeds of chemical reactions on the anode and the cathode.
Therefore due to principle of energy conversion the gravity field will generate an adequate electrical field which will exceed hydration energy and will realize the electrolyse. This process is accompanied by plentiful absorption of thermal energy through heat exchanger and needs to dissolve a solution by water to initial concentration continuosly. A basic power scheme of electrolysis in EHG is similar to a scheme of conventional electrolysis. However in our case any electrical energy is’nt spent, but every cheap thermal energy from eniromental or other sources is used.
There are following chemical reactions in the generator:
In the solution
HBrO3 ® H+ + BrO3- or, for example, H2O + SO2 + 0,5 O2 ® H2 SO4
H2 SO4 ® 2 H + + SO4 - 2
On the cathode
2H+ + 2e- ® H2
On the anode
2 BrO3- - 2 e- ® 0,5O2 + Br2O5 or SO4 - 2 - 2 å - ® SO2 + O2
SO3 - 2 - 2å - ® SO2 + 0,5 O2
In by- anode space the reaction of sediment and hydrated water
Br2O5 + H2O ® 2HBrO3 or H2O + SO2 ® H2 SO3
HBrO3 ® H + + BrO3- H2 SO3 ® 2 H + + SO3 - 2
Gravitational electrolysis has several following features.
Firstly, every mechanical work of the inertial field spent to the sediment of the water molecules, light and in particular heavy iones, is replaced practically by kinetic energy of gases (hydrogen, oxygen and anode gases) floated to the vessel axis because their density is less than a solution density. The result is a sum of a moment of momentum for initial and end electrolysis products nears to zero. This is any mechanical work is’nt executed in the solution. The supplied mechanical energy is spent to overcome friction forces in a rotation drive. The gases created at the anode and the anode’s sediment enter into secondary chemical reactions with water and oxygen forming initial structure of the solution.
Secondly, intensive solution cooling causes heat absorption from environment or another source. By this an endothermal effect of water decomposition’s reaction is compensated i.e. EHG works as the thermal pump. For millions of years Earth’s nature uses heat for decomposition water and carbon dioxide to increase hydrocarbon biomass. It is known this process is executed at light absence, for exmple, in old wells, under ground etc. Therefore there is possible in nature the thermochemical process for transition of heat into potential chemical energy. The second rule of thermodynamics explains this causing to enthropy inreasing. In our case
D S = - Q× Te- 1 - (- Q× Ts- 1 ) = Q(Ts- 1 - Te- 1 ) > 0
(at Te > Ts, a solution has a less temperarure than enviroment),
when
Q - chemical reaction’s thermal effect of water molecules decomposition, joules
Te - temperarure of enviroment, ° K;
Ts - temperarure of solution, ° K;
Thermodynamical efficiency factor of the process
h = (Te - Ts)× Te - 1 = 0,2...0,4
in nature is much less because biomass cannot be cooled highly, and temperarure of enviroment is’nt very big. In our case temperarure of solution may be much less 273 ° K.
Total efficiency factor of the process
h ù = Q (A + Q)- 1 = 0,86¸ 0,98,
when
A - energy consumption in the EHG’s mechanical drive, joules
Thirdly, the generator is able to develop a constant electrical current on external load if the vessel rotation frequency is more than calculated minimum. Then EHG has a feature as electrical generator which has a capacitor kind of graph voltage/current (its output voltage is proportional an external load).
Fourthly, EHG combines in one device the functions of two divices – electrical generator and electrolyser.
On completion, due to use free heat sources such as enviromental heat, losses from industrial, energetics or transport installations a cost of hydrogen production is decreased highly.
Due to all above mentioned features gravitational electrolysis is more effective and cheaper than known processes in hydrogen energetics.
EHG has simple design, may be easy built into thermal turbines and various power installations. Use of heat losses of internal combustion engines allows to decrease fuel consumption about twice and to increase the engine’s efficiency factor up to 70%. Also an exhaust toxicity is essentially reduced. These advantages may be used in a car with electrical drive.
The application of EHG for compressor stations of gas pipelines will allow to decrease about 2-2,5 times turboagregates’ fuel consumption due to use of heat output while natural gas is compressed. The cooling of transported natural gas by EHG up to a temperature below zero will allow to create additional pressure in a pipeline (approximately for 6-8 %) and therefore will increase throughput. The taken heat can be transformed for needs of economic objects located near a gas pipeline.
On aircrafts EHG can decrease an airborne weight due to a fuel reserve reducing. Therefore improving of fuel consumption along with payload increasing will cause decreasing of shipment cost about 25-30 %.
On rail transportation EHG can allow to use all equipment with diesel traction only as the cheapest. Accordingly costs of electrical networks maintenance will highly decrease.
The application of EHG on ships will allow to reduce greatly a consumption of hydrocarbon fuel due to use of thermal energy of outside water. The installation of EHG on ships and submarines will provide them practically unlimited autonomous operation. At space stations EHG can be used as cheap and safe fuel source.
Floating mobile stations will be able to supply coastal towns, industrial or agricultural objects by thermal and electrical energy. Accordingly hydrogen can become cheaper than natural gas. The various versions of EHG can be applied in stationary and mobile power installations, particularly in far-away settlements, industrial objects, expeditions, farms etc. Any sources of heat, for example, solar and geothermal energy, industrial and household drains, can serve as power supply for EHG. Use of EHG at existing thermal and atomic power stations will raise essentially their profitability.
In ferrous metallurgy cheap hydrogen can replace expensive coke. Thus an emission of carbon dioxide in environment will be considerably reduced.
On spacecrafts EHG can replace gyroscopes and conventional solar panels as well provide orientation engines by effective, very cheap and safe fuel.
A source of heat for EHG may be enthalpy of any water body, industrial and household drains, enviromental air. It may be also internal heat surplus of buildings, mines, industrial gases, including applied in metallurgy and chemistry, as well solar, wind, and geothermal energy. Invention may be have perspectives to effective use of heat created by underground afterburning of coal resting in uneconomical mines.
The invention may be perhaps used for separation of various inorganic substances, for example at uranium enrichment. It allows to divide isotopes of U235 and U238, by separating them from water solution as a metal powder.
The simple design enables to realize production a series of some most simple verions of EHG without significant investments within several months. Estimated cost of the EHG produced in Russia will be $25...28 per kW of thermal capacity. The calculated profitability of investments to realize the invention exceeds 100 % provided a beginning of profit getting less 1.5 years. Years’ benefit of application of the EHG is on average about $87 per kilowatt of heat power.
There is a detailed technical substantiation of gravitational electrolysis process (
http://web.uni.udm.ru/common/biomed/mis-rt.htm
) as well design documentation and the EHG’s evaluation unit.
references-Authors V.V. Studennikov
G. I. Kudimov
Russia,117574, Moscow, str. Vilniusskaya, 4, apt.339,
ph. (095) 421-13-87 V.V. Studennikov
Russia,115580, Moscow, str. Musa Dzhalil, 27, block 2, apt. 284,
ph/fax (095) 396-80-27 G. I. Kudimov
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