Novel technologies of hydrogen production and separation (Invited Speech)
Over the last several decades, hydrogen has been considered as a promising fuel to substitute fossil fuels used in heat and power generation. This arises from the fact that hydrogen is a non-carbon fuel and the most abundant element in the universe. Hydrogen is a potential energy carrier which can be applied in the transportation sector. By virtue of much higher power density or heating value per unit mass of hydrogen when compared to other gas or liquid fuels, it has been employed in liquid rockets and space shuttles as an important propellant for many decades. In recent years, much progress has been made in fuel cells, resulting in the foreseeable future of hydrogen economy. Hydrogen production is the first step to practice hydrogen economy. This talk will introduce a number of novel thermochemical conversion technologies for producing hydrogen-rich gases. Then, the hydrogen separation methods using palladium-based (Pd-based) membranes will be addressed. The important findings from the studies will be highlighted.