Thermoelectric Assisted Cascaded Microreactor for Solar Hydrogen Production Using Ti3C2-CdS Heterostructure Photoelectrocatalysis
Journal
Advanced Energy Materials
ISSN
16146832
Date Issued
2026
Author(s)
Nahak, Bishal Kumar
Kumar, S Sovan
Roy Chowdhury, Jaba
Sharma, Manish Kumar
Parashar, Parag
Singh, Uday Kumar
Khan, Arshad
Joshi, Ravindra
Ray, Meenakshi
Tseng, Fan-Gang
Abstract
Harnessing the full solar spectrum for sustainable hydrogen production remains a major challenge in photoelectrocatalytic (PEC) water splitting. Herein, we present a cascaded microfluidic PEC reactor integrated with a thermoelectric generator (TEG), achieving a Solar-to-Hydrogen (STH) conversion efficiency of 28%. The device combines three synergistic elements: (i) Ti3C2-CdS heterostructure catalysts that enhance charge separation and suppress recombination; (ii) a planar microfluidic reactor that ensures uniform light penetration, laminar flow, and efficient mass transport; and (iii) a Bi2Te3-based TEG module that harvests solar waste heat to provide supplemental bias for overcoming kinetic barriers. The cascaded architecture enables sequential light harvesting across four reactors, leading to cumulative hydrogen yields exceeding 10 890 µmol g−1 h−1, while simultaneously enabling rapid water treatment. This work establishes a scalable, self-powered, and multifunctional platform for decentralized clean energy generation and water purification by integrating thermal-electrics and PEC pathways into a single compact device.
Subjects
advanced oxidation process
hydrogen generation
microfluidic
photoelectrocatalysis
reactor
thermoelectric generator
Publisher
John Wiley and Sons Inc
Type
journal article