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The typical mono-si solar panel is about 20-22% efficiency. For poly-si this drops to about 15%, but are cheaper and therefore still sees a lot of demand. Solar
by Hypx_ 5y ago
The typical mono-si solar panel is about 20-22% efficiency. For poly-si this drops to about 15%, but are cheaper and therefore still sees a lot of demand. Solar water-splitting at 13.8% is well in the range of feasible competitiveness as long as it is cheap to build.
- pfdietz 5y agoMono panels were 75% of the market in 2020, I read. A concern I'd have with this water splitting is getting the water in and the hydrogen out (and separated from the oxygen). Wires are easier than pipes. Doing this with ordinary PV also means the hydrogen production can be dispatchable. When PV output is tight, just stop making hydrogen and use the electrical power directly.
- moron4hire 5y agoKeeping the hydrogen output separate from the water input and oxygen output is easy. You feed water in to the bottom of a U shaped container. You put the hydrogen-producing electrode in one half of the U and the oxygen-producing one in the other. The hydrogen and oxygen bubble up out of the water into separate collectors.
- pjc50 5y agoThat only works with separate electrode systems; in-panel splitting (where the panel has a sheet of water directly over a catalyst) evolve both gases in the same place.
- Hypx_ 5y agoFor larger installations pipes are easier than wires.
- danuker 5y agoWhy is that? I would guess solid-state (electrons in wire) is more reliable than moving-parts (fluids in pipes).
- pfdietz 5y agoAnd it's easier to connect two wires than it is to connect two pipes. All the little tubing collecting the hydrogen stream trickling out of these things seems like it would be a nightmare to create and maintain.
- Hypx_ 5y agoOver short distances sure, but once you're talking thousands of km a pipeline is way simpler.
- pfdietz 5y agoThat's nice, but it doesn't help the local collection network in the solar field. Using large separate electrolyzers driven by conventional PV lets you avoid that.
- Hypx_ 5y agoUnless the destination of the electricity is also next to the local collection network the pipeline can be simpler. It's certainly not going to be a worse idea.
- pfdietz 5y agoYou didn't understand what I said. I'm not arguing about a pipeline. I'm arguing about all the little hydrogen carrying piping in the solar field. This is needed to bring together all that hydrogen being generated at the hydrogen-generating solar collectors, before it even gets to a pipeline. Simpler just to avoid all that and generate the hydrogen at large separate electrolyzers at the side of the utility-scale solar field (say), and then inject into the pipeline.
- Hypx_ 5y agoShould be noted that that will work too. In fact that is the plan for most facilities. However, you will still need a separate electrolysis facility. With this you just pipe hydrogen into bigger pipes. It could be cheaper to implement it this way.
- dragontamer 5y agoNice to see ya posting around here. Always a pleasure. I'm not as pro-Hydrogen as you but I see some potential benefits for sure :-)