A first in green hydrogen reactor technology has been launched at the University of Adelaide’s Roseworthy campus by Sparc Hydrogen, a start-up company founded to translate research conducted by Professor Greg Metha. The company is a joint venture between metals company Fortescue, Sparc Technologies and the University of Adelaide.
The Sparc Hydrogen Advanced Research Pilot (SHARP) is a test bed for photocatalytic water splitting (PWS), a process that harnesses the sun’s energy to extract (green) hydrogen from water, without the need for electrolysers powered by electricity – a potential game-changer in the global effort to deliver scalable, low-cost, renewable hydrogen.
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SHARP will accelerate the development of Sparc Hydrogen’s patented PWS reactor technology and will enable real-world evaluation of PWS catalysts being developed globally. In bringing together the world’s best reactor and catalyst technologies, and invaluable operational experience, SHARP represents a huge step forward in solar hydrogen commercialisation.
PWS is often referred to as direct solar-to-hydrogen technology as it avoids the need to convert solar energy into electricity to split water via electrolysis. In photocatalysis, the sun’s energy is directed onto a highly specialised photocatalyst material, which forms reactive sites that split water into hydrogen and oxygen without electrolysis.
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Despite decades of research and notable advancements, the efficiency of PWS remains a key challenge to reaching commercialisation. The SHARP pilot plant aims to improve the economics of producing green hydrogen using PWS through driving increased efficiencies within modular and scalable concentrated solar infrastructure.
In the lead up to commissioning of the plant, front-end engineering and design was undertaken by leading global engineering and commercial service provider Incitias, while Sparc Hydrogen’s PWS reactor, which is being commissioned using photocatalysts developed by Shinshu University in Japan, was developed at the University of Adelaide’s School of Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences.
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‘Sparc Hydrogen demonstrates how the University of Adelaide is working with industry partners to develop new pathways for the translation of world-class research conducted here in South Australia,’ said Professor Anton Middelberg, deputy vice-chancellor (research) at the University of Adelaide. ‘This project aims to respond to one of the great challenges of our times: the development of green energy solutions for a sustainable future for society.’
‘The SHARP plant at the University of Adelaide’s Roseworthy campus will allow us to independently and concurrently test different reactor designs and photocatalyst materials,’ said Professor Greg Metha, lead researcher and inventor, Sparc Hydrogen, and acting director of the Centre for Energy Technology at the University of Adelaide. ‘This next-generation photocatalytic water splitting technology has major advantages over electrolysis as it offers the potential to produce low cost, scalable green hydrogen and heat without significant electricity use.’