ELECTROCHEMICAL SYSTEM AND METHOD OF USING AN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL
A method of using an electrochemical cell includes sparging a gas including oxygen into an anolyte using an anolyte oxygen sparger, wherein the anolyte is circulated to contact an anode of an electrochemical cell including the anode, a cathode, and a membrane between the anode and the cathode.
1 . A method of using an electrochemical cell, the method comprising:
sparging a gas comprising oxygen into an anolyte using an anolyte oxygen sparger, wherein the anolyte is circulated to contact an anode of an electrochemical cell comprising
the anode,
a cathode, and
a membrane between the anode and the cathode.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the anode comprises platinum, ruthenium, iridium, nickel, cobalt, iron, copper, manganese, molybdenum, or a combination thereof.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the gas comprising oxygen has a concentration of oxygen of 22% to 100%.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the gas comprising oxygen comprises oxygen and further comprises one or more inert gases, air, or a combination thereof.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the gas comprising oxygen comprises oxygen generated by the anode.
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the sparger releases bubbles of the gas comprising oxygen into the anolyte from a pipe, a tube, a mesh, a sieve, a plate, a nozzle, a porous nozzle, a porous surface, or a combination thereof.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the sparger releases bubbles of the gas comprising oxygen into the anolyte outside of the electrochemical cell.
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the oxygen sparger sparges the gas comprising oxygen into the anolyte at a rate of 0.01 mL to 100 mL per 1 mL of anolyte.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the sparging of the gas comprising oxygen into the anolyte saturates the anolyte with oxygen.
10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the anolyte having the gas comprising oxygen sparged therein has a dissolved concentration of oxygen of 10 mg/L to 200 mg/L.
11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein circulating the anolyte to contact the anode further comprises circulating a gas phase to contact the anode, wherein the gas phase is circulated to contact the anode with the anolyte.
12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the gas phase has a concentration of oxygen of 22% to 100%.
13 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the gas phase has a concentration of hydrogen in oxygen of less than 4%.
14 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the method comprises circulating the anolyte and a gas phase through an anolyte circulation loop.
15 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising separating at least a portion of the gas phase in the anolyte circulation loop from the combined anolyte and gas phase.
16 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the anolyte circulation loop further comprises an anolyte storage tank, an oxygen storage tank, or a combination thereof.
17 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising supplying the anolyte from an electrolyte tank.
18 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising contacting the cathode with catholyte supplied from the electrolyte tank.
19 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises collecting hydrogen gas released from the cathode in a hydrogen storage tank.
20 . An electrochemical system comprising:
an electrochemical cell comprising
an anode,
a cathode, and
a membrane between the anode and the cathode; and
an anolyte oxygen sparger than sparges a gas comprising oxygen into an anolyte that is circulated to contact the anode.