CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUIDES

This chapter exhibits the related foreign and local literature and studies after the

through and in-depth search done by the researchers.

Related literature

Water (H2O)

According to New World Encyclopedia (2020) water is a common chemical

substance that is essential for all knowns of life, it is estimated that about 71% percent of

the earth’s surface is covered by water mostly in oceans and other large water bodies

which is critically important for humans. Water is abundant and humans are finding ways

to make it useful.

As stated by Ghosh (2019) humans use water for many processes including

drinking, cooking, cleaning, heating and cooking. It is very valuable for performing daily

activities and industrial processes as well as scientific experimentation, water is very

beneficial that makes people to find other uses and components of it.

In addition, according to renewable energy world (2014) Water is a chemical

compound with the chemical formula H2O that stands for 2 Hydrogen atoms covalently

bonded to a single oxygen atom but when it separates it forms hydrogen and oxygen

mixed gas or Oxyhydrogen.

The Bring science home (2016) mentioned that oxygen and hydrogen can

be combine to form water but making water from its elements produces a large amount of
energy that is almost impossible to control and most of the time may lead to an explosion.

But splitting water into two elements is much easier and effective. Breaking down of

hydrogen and oxygen atom in in the water is easier and safer than combining them and it

is possible through the passage of an electric current.

Water Electrolysis

There are several different ways to isolate hydrogen. Some methods like

gasification and steam reforming involve extracting it from other substances such as

methane, coal, and oils but the most known method is the electrolysis of water (Sharma,

2014).

Electrolysis is defined as the splitting of chemical compounds in solution by the

action of an electric current passing through the solution. It is considered as the cleanest

way to produce hydrogen that doesn’t emit any harmful gases to the environment as long

as the required electricity is supplied by renewable energy sources. Given the fact that the

global water volume is estimated to be around 1.4×109 km3 (Science Direct,2015).

In addition, in the electrolysis process Direct current (DC) will be used to separate

the oxygen and hydrogen with the help of the Electrodes connected to the positive and

negative terminal of the battery, Electrodes will provide the physical interface between

the electric circuit providing the energy and electrolyte, Each electrode attract ions on

two opposite charged, positively charged ions or cations move toward the electron

providing cathode which is negative; negatively charged ions , or anions move towards

the positive anode. This can be differentiate by determining the part of the battery where

the electrode is connected (lumen learning, 2017).

 Furthermore, in order to attract the anions and cations in the process of

electrolysis, more than 1.23V of energy is needed to break down the water molecules

(Dongguk University,2019). But, the voltage needed should not be rises to dangerous

levels that may lead to an explosion, the most important caution is that don’t use wall

current , house current or any type of main current for electrolysis under any

circumstances.

According to Chrisholm and Cronin (2016) hydrogen production by water

splitting reaction is a means of storing excess electrical energy produced by renewable

energy sources. This hydrogen gas may be used directly to produce power via

combustion or recombination with oxygen in a fuel cell and it may be used as a transport

fuel and cooking fuel or as a chemical intermediate. Water electrolysis for hydrogen

production has received increasing attention especially for engineers and scientist that

wants to solve the problem regarding fuel shortage, this proves that water electrolysis

process in hydrogen production is a very promising one.

Hydrogen Gas

Hydrogen gas has been considered as the future fuel of the generation, it is an

ideal alternative to fossil fuels because of its benefits to the environment and abundance

in the universe, It is a promising source of clean fuel on earth. It gives only hydrogen by

combustion then combined to oxygen to form water again, it does not give any pollutants

such as carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide as well as dirt and soot like

particles (Inagaki & Kang ,2014).

 Hydrogen gas can be produced by different methods, it can be through steam

reforming , microbial catalytic conversion, thermolysis, supercritical water reforming

and electrolysis. As stated by (Ding & He ,2016), Hydrogen gas is an attractive

alternative sustainable energy due to its high energy density and zero greenhouse gas

emission after combustion but it requires cautions for safety because it is not safe to

handle and ignite it without proper equipment like metal tubes and fiber.

In addition, in 1671 Robert Boyle produced hydrogen gas accidentally while he

was experimenting with iron and acids and he found out that hydrogen gas is an energy

carrier element that can be used for broad range of applications (Lifescience.com, 2015).

Uses of Hydrogen gas

According to Connecticut (2016) Hydrogen is used to process crude oil into

refined fuels, such as gasoline and diesel, and also for removing contaminants, such as

Sulphur, from these fuels. Hydrogen gas is considered as a good candidate to contribute

to the decarbonization of the road transport sector if it is produced from renewable energy

sources through the process of electrolysis and it is said to be more cleaner and more

efficient than traditional combustion based engines and power plants, it doesn’t emit

carbon dioxide and other harmful gases that contributes to global warming. For the

environmental impact When hydrogen is used to power a fuel cell, the only by products

are water and heat- no pollutants are produced.

In addition, hydrogen is an energy medium, it will not dissipate until it is used,

making it a good application for emergency generators and other mission critical energy

applications.
 In contrast, a number of hydrogen properties make it safer and use than

commonly fuel used today. Hydrogen gas is non- toxic, it is much lighter than air, and it

dissipates rapidly when it is released , allowing for relatively rapid dispersal of the fuel in

case of leak

Fossil Fuel Shortage

Fossil fuel is one of the major source of energy in the world that gives fuel,

electricity, cooking gas and etc. It helps people for providing their daily necessities and

making their way of life easier. Fossil fuels have formed over an extensive period of time

from the remains of plants and animals that lived hundred of millions year ago. Humans

have been using them in ample amounts since the 19th century and with our current rate

of consumption, fossil fuel resources are depleting much faster than their formation, it is

estimated that 40 years from now all fossil fuels in the world will be depleted (ZME

Science ,2018). Shortage of fossil fuel may lead to various problem such as scarcity in

electricity and high market price of fuel like Kerosene, Crude oil and Cooking gas.

According to trading economics (2014) 62.43% of energy in the Philippines is

from fossil fuel, it comprise of coal oil, cooking gas, petroleum, kerosene, and electricity.

In the year 2004 to 2014 fuel consumption in the country reached an average of 52.78

thousand barrels per day and a minimum consumption of 24.0 thousand and a maximum

of 108 thousand barrels per day in 2014. That shows, majority of Filipino is using the

products of fossil fuels and it would be hard for them to adjust for the fuel shortage.
 Therefore, Connecticut (2016) promotes the use of renewable source of energy

like water and wind as an alternative source of fuels. Given the fact that it is more safe

for the environment, cheaper and more ideal to use.

Catalyst

Catalyst is a substance that speeds up a chemical reaction, it is put on the solution

to be mixed and enhance the reaction on the mixture. According to (Millet &

Bessarabov,2018) water is a poor conductor of electricity and cannot undergo significant

electrolysis without an acid or a base. To conduct electrolysis on water a catalyst is

needed, it will serves as the passageway of aqueous alkaline electrolyte to speed up the

passage of electricity and the production of hydrogen. The catalyst containing free ion are

the carriers of electric current in the electrolyte and if the ions are not mobile , as in a

solid salt, then electrolysis cannot occur.

Furthermore, According to lumen learning (2017), sodium chloride (NaCl) is one

of the most effective and cheapest catalyst for electrolysis, In the process , Sodium ions

migrate to cathode, and chloride ions go to anode and then overall reaction will occur and

hydrogen and chlorine gas will produce but According to the department of health

(2014), chlorine Gas is not safe for the health, it is irritating to the eyes nose and throat

and at high levels of exposure it could cause serious injury or death. Also, usage of

sodium chloride (NaCl) in the electrolysis of water can make the electrodes rusty.

Therefore, the naked scientist (2014) recommended to use potassium hydroxide

(KOH) as an electrolyte for better hydrogen production.

Potassium Hydroxide

Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) is also known as lye, it is an organic compound with

chemical formula KOH or commonly referred as caustic potash, with many industrial and

niche applications (drugbank,2015).

According to Pubchem (2020) potassium hydroxide (KOH) is used in various

chemical and industrial and manufacturing applications, it is used in foods to adjust pH ,

as a stabilizer and as a thickening agent. This ingredient has been considered as generally

safe as a direct human food ingredient by the FDA, in addition to the above uses,

potassium hydroxide (KOH) Is also used in making soap, as an electrolyte in alkaline

batteries and in electroplating, lithography and as an electrolyte for the splitting of atoms

in the water.

In water electrolysis potassium hydroxide mixed on the solution that will served

as an electrolyte which speeds up the chemical reaction and the conductivity of the water,

it is normally used for water splitting process to avoid the corrosion problems caused by

acid electrolytes (scielo,2014).

Related Studies

Local Studies

According to the study conducted by Jopek (2015) in University of the

Philippines los banos, laguna campus entitled “Hydrogen Production: Electrolysis”,

burning of hydrogen gas from water does not emit greenhouse gases containing carbon to

the atmosphere. It has a net heat of combustion of 241.9292 KJ g-1 and a gas density of

0.0899 g1-1 which is not harmful to the environment. But compared to other fuels like
methanol, petrol, diesel or kerosene it is obvious that hydrogen yields much higher

energy per unit weight than any other fuel, hydrogen has a high energy to weight ratio

and can be hazardous to handle. The flammability range is highest for hydrogen, but as

long as it stays in an area that is properly ventilated there is no risk of reaching this limit.

Extracting of hydrogen from electrolysis process is said to be ideal, beneficial and

considered to be the new possible sources of energy to meet the growing demand on fuel.

Hydrogen gas is the most desirable properties for a fuel that can be extracted

through the passage of an electric current, According to a study conducted in University

of the Philippines los banos, laguna entitled “Hydrogen production by Photovoltaic

Electrolysis of H2O” by Topacio (2014), a significant amount of hydrogen is produced

by the electrolysis of water , a simple electrochemical process that is well understood. In

operation, It produces hydrogen and oxygen co-products of very high purity, and the only

input required is pure water and electrical energy, In the ideal case , a voltage of 1.47V

applied to a water electrolysis at 25oC would decompose the water into hydrogen and

oxygen isothermally at 100 percent electrical efficiency. A voltage as low as 1.23 will

decompose the water but under these conditions, the reaction is endothermic and energy

in the form of water would be absorbed from the surroundings. Also he observed that

voltage has a great impact on hydrogen production , at a constant current, when the

voltage increases the amount of gas also increases which is in good agreement with study

of the effect of voltage using stainless steel, and to make the product more efficient he

recommended to use thinner kind of electrodes that can give higher efficiency as well as

long life usage.

 In a study conducted by Cortez, Panaligan, & Tena (2014) in Southern Luzon

State University, Lucban Campus, entitled “Conversion of Gasoline Engine to Hydrogen

Engine”, they stated that Hydrogen powered machines and equipment are more efficient,

due to its abundance in nature. Moreover, they mentioned that energy in hydrogen

molecules contain vast amounts of energy, and looking for economical means to access

this energy can solve future fuel scarcity.

Foreign studies

On the study entitled “Hydrogen generation by water electrolysis by Naimi and

Finter (2017). Concluded that hydrogen economy is a promising instrument for the

transformation of the energy system it gives the concept of renewability because it can

use a non-greenhouse gas energy source. A technique that provides applications and

requires small volumes of high purity hydrogen, including the semi-conductor and food

industry. hydrogen is an energy carrier for sustainable development and it is also

expected to be used as a secondary energy in near future.

In addition, according to the study conducted by Yuvaraj and Santhanaraj (2014)

entitled “Systematic study on electrolytic production of hydrogen gas by using graphite

as electrode” to achieved a better production of hydrogen steel, aluminum, stainless

copper and iron is the most applicable electrodes due to the familiar corrosion- resistant

properties of these materials. The efficiency of hydrogen production is based on its

electrods, voltage and catalyst as its main parts.

 According to a study conducted by Sun and Hsiau (2018) entitled “ Effect of

Electrolyte Concentration Difference on Hydrogen production during PEM Electrolysis “

the water electrolysis device is divided into two parts the reactor and the electrodes,

Reactor is the space used to store the electrolyte with an opening to each side for the

separation of gas. While, electrode is the place between the reactor and the membrane

containing the cathode and anode connected to the positive and negative terminal of the

battery. He also mentioned that when the distance between anode and cathode is smaller,

the current due to electrolysis is larger, given the same electrode, electrolyte solution and

potential. Therefore, electrodes with a larger surface area and small distance between

them become part of the overall design of the electrolyser. Also, based on the conclusion

of their study, the concentration of electrolytres was varied, and the effect on the

electrolysis was obvious in the standard situation , there was an optimized parameter with

different concentrations at the anode and cathode. The efficiency of electrolysis was

better better when the voltage was fixed at 2 volts, and the potassium hydroxide solution

concentration was 25wt% at the anode and 30% at the cathode.

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Center of competence of North-west University.

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Dongguk University. (2019).Process of Electrolysis – converting renewable energy

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