Investigation of a unique integrated photoelectrochemical system for multigeneration purposes

This study develops, investigates and analyze a continuous type hybrid photoelectrochemical-chloralkali H2 production reactor that converts the by–products into useful industrial commodities (i.e., Cl2 and NaOH). The proposed system maximizes solar spectrum use by taking advantage of photocatalysis and PV/T. Furthermore, by using electrodes as electron donors to support the photochemical reaction, the potential risk of pollutant emissions is minimized. The final products of this novel integrated system can be listed as H2, Cl2, NaOH, heat, and electricity. In this study, the effects of operating temperature and inlet mass flow rates on H2, Cl2, heat, and electricity production, energy and exergy efficiencies, and exergy destruction rates are presented. The results of this investigation show that the proposed system is capable of producing hydrogen up to 70 L/h, chlorine up to 60 L/h, heat up to 800 W, electricity up to 160 W, with energy and exergy efficiencies up to 80% and 30%, respectively.