About this Research Topic

Background

Renewable sources of hydrogen present opportunities to decarbonize multiple sectors of the economy and can contribute to sustainable electricity, manufacturing, and transportation. There are at least four technology pathways for advanced water splitting that are being actively researched. These pathways can be characterized as low and high temperature electrolysis (LTE and HTE), photoelectrochemical (PEC), and solar thermochemical (STCH). Within each pathway, there can also be multiple technical approaches. For example, in LTE, proton and alkaline exchange membranes provide at least two distinctly different approaches. Similarly, for HTE, proton and oxygen ion conducting membranes also lead to distinct approaches. For PEC, panel-like photoelectrodes and particle-based photocatalyst systems present major distinctions. Finally, for STCH, redox active metal oxide cycles and hybrid electrochemical-thermochemical cycles are distinct. Furthermore, there can be yet additional or hybrid pathways not mentioned above.

The multitude of pathways also entail a wide range of technology and commercial maturity. Terminology and methodologies that can compare between technology pathways and that can drive consistency are necessary for multiple purposes from guiding policy development to developing research agendas and commensurate investment. The expectation is that the four general pathways will have some common standards and benchmarks, but may also have vastly different requirements and needs, as a result of the immensely different maturity levels and materials/device concerns.

Nevertheless, in order to track and report on progress and to set global priorities for advanced water splitting hydrogen research, there is a dire need to gain consistency within and across individual technology pathways in order to reliably evaluate and compare the potential for each pathway. In addition, time is not our friend, and the lack of consistency and agreed upon benchmarks, protocols, standards, or roadmaps creates a large activation barrier for entry, for communicating to decision makers, and for general outreach.

In the interest of lowering the barriers and disseminating best practices in characterizing and benchmarking advanced water splitting materials, creating a foundation in accelerated materials, device, and systems research, development and deployment for the broader research community, this Research Topic seeks articles that describe comparisons, materials screening, characterization protocols, benchmarks, techno-economics, system analyses, and roadmaps for any and all advanced water splitting pathways, in which the primary energy is renewable (or at least carbon-free).

This Research Topic covers but is not limited to the following concepts:
• Protocols, standards, or benchmarks for characterization of aspects of hydrogen production from advanced water splitting, e.g., using technologies such as photo-electro-chemistry; low temperature electrolysis - proton or alkaline membrane; intermediate and high temperature electrolysis – proton or oxygen ion conducting; or solar thermochemical;
• Techno-economic and life-cycle analyses of the societal impacts of sustainable hydrogen production from any of the pathways;
• Roadmaps to economic and commercial viability for any of the pathways.

Keywords: Hydrogen, Sustainability, Solar Fuel, Protocols, Benchmarks

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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