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Topic: Photoelectrochemical setup  (Read 3662 times)

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Offline mkbh10

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Photoelectrochemical setup
« on: January 27, 2012, 03:50:11 AM »
I have to setup a photoelectrochemical expt to generate hydrogen gas using ZnO/TiO2 film . The lab doesn't have a gas chromatograph so I need to know whats the easy and cheap way to measure the concentration of the evolved hydrogen gas ?

Offline Arkcon

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Re: Photoelectrochemical setup
« Reply #1 on: January 27, 2012, 07:26:18 AM »
Hmmm, tricky.  What other gases are likely present?  Just water vapor, or also air?  Can you just use the volume collected, and account for everything else?
Hey, I'm not judging.  I just like to shoot straight.  I'm a man of science.

Offline mkbh10

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Re: Photoelectrochemical setup
« Reply #2 on: January 28, 2012, 02:09:02 AM »
Hydrogen gas will be present due to reduction at cathode and oxygen at anode. The bubles present at the cathode can give an indirect indication of hydrogen gas presence but I need to quantify the amount of gas present. 

Offline Arkcon

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Re: Photoelectrochemical setup
« Reply #3 on: January 28, 2012, 08:01:51 AM »
OK, so no air.  I assume you're keeping the oxygen produced separate.  I may be wrong about that, some commercial electrolysis rigs use concentric electrodes, and the gasses end up mixing.  Shudder. You can compensate for the water vapor, that's a look-up table, and some basic high school chemistry problem.  You can scrub other gasses out using a reaction tube: for oxygen, a tube full of oxidizable compound will scrub the gas.  For that matter, a drying tube would take care of water vapor.  But sampling the gas and analyzing by GC would be simplest.
Hey, I'm not judging.  I just like to shoot straight.  I'm a man of science.

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