Method for producing NANO metal oxide and hydrogen

Abstract

To provide a method for producing a nano metal oxide and hydrogen.SOLUTION: A method for preparing a nano-metal oxide and hydrogen, comprising the following steps: step A: providing a first reactor, charging a metal material, an alcohol compound and a first catalyst into the first reactor, and reacting by heating to form a metal alkoxide compound; A large amount of hydrogen is generated at the same time, step B: preparing a second reactor, after the reaction of the metal material in the first reactor is completed in step A, the residual solution is introduced into the second reactor, a second catalyst and a fixed amount of water are added, and proper heating is performed to form a powdery nano metal oxide, which has the effects of greatly reducing the production cost, improving the safety, popularizing the hydrogen fuel cell, very low carbon emission, definable as "green hydrogen", and reducing the storage cost and risk.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the production of hydrogen, and more particularly to nanometal oxides and methods for producing hydrogen. [Background technology]

[0002] Hydrogen is one of the most abundant elements on Earth, but it cannot exist stably in its elemental state. It is usually converted into water molecules to remain stable. When hydrogen is burned, only pure water is produced, and no pollutants such as exhaust gases are emitted. For this reason, hydrogen has recently attracted attention as a promising alternative to fossil fuels. Many countries around the world, especially developed industrial nations, view hydrogen energy as an important green energy source of the future and are promoting the development of sustainable hydrogen production technologies. Hydrogen production is an industrial technology that has been used for many years and has a wide range of applications, including power generation, energy storage, fuel cell vehicles, and hydrogen heating, and plays a very important role in the energy transition process.

[0003] In light of the shortcomings of existing technologies, the present invention addresses the issue of hydrogen, the lightest and most abundant element in nature, which cannot be used as is. Typically, hydrogen gas must be separated from its compounds with oxygen, carbon, and other atoms before it can be used industrially. Currently, approximately 95% of hydrogen is derived from fossil fuels through steam reforming, in which a mixture of steam and methane is brought into contact with a nickel catalyst under high pressure to produce gases such as hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide.

[0004] The prior art related to the present invention is as follows: In the early 1970s, a photocatalytic hydrogen production method was developed in academia. This method used a titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalyst to split water using sunlight or ultraviolet light to produce hydrogen and oxygen, and the hydrogen produced could be used in fuel cells. However, the efficiency of hydrogen production using titanium dioxide was very low, making it unsuitable for industrial production. Furthermore, to improve production efficiency, expensive or toxic metals such as ruthenium, platinum, and cadmium had to be used, making this conventional technology unable to meet modern environmental protection requirements or the need for low cost. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2020-536032 Summary of the Invention

[0006] Traditionally, hydrogen has been produced by electrolyzing water, using electricity generated from renewable energy sources to split water and produce hydrogen and oxygen. However, this method consumes a great deal of energy and requires a large amount of water, so only about 5% of the hydrogen produced is produced. This production efficiency is very limited, and it is currently unable to meet industrial needs. A current trend is "green hydrogen," which uses surplus wind and solar power to electrolyze water to produce hydrogen. Because this method uses renewable energy, it has low carbon emissions and is considered environmentally friendly. However, it remains expensive, and there are issues with transportation and storage, preventing it from becoming widely used. [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] To achieve the above and other objectives, the gas produced by steam reforming often contains various by-products other than hydrogen, which may cause new environmental pollution. Therefore, the industry is seeking environmentally friendly solutions. In the development of hydrogen production technology, it is important to achieve energy savings while effectively utilizing existing resources and to lead to practical application while also protecting the environment.

[0008] Hydrogen production using aluminum is also a method that has attracted attention in recent years. However, the production process involves reacting aluminum with an alkaline aqueous solution to produce hydrogen and aluminum hydroxide. The aluminum hydroxide produced in this way has a weak structure and little added value. Furthermore, sintering it into aluminum oxide requires high temperatures and a large amount of energy, making it costly and uneconomical. However, this production method remains attractive to the industry because it has the advantage of reducing the risks and costs associated with hydrogen transportation and storage. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In view of the above, in order to overcome the problems of the prior art in producing hydrogen and nano metal oxides, such as high production costs, low safety, high carbon emissions, incompatibilities with environmental requirements, and high storage and transportation costs and risks, the present invention provides a method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen, which comprises the following steps: Step A: A first reactor is prepared, and a metal material, an alcohol-based compound, and a first catalyst are charged into the first reactor, followed by a heat treatment to produce a metal alcoholate compound and generate a large amount of hydrogen. Step B: Prepare a second reactor. After the reaction of the metal material in the first reactor is completed in Step A, introduce the remaining solution into the second reactor, add a second catalyst and a certain amount of water, and heat appropriately to form powdered nanometal oxide. This will significantly reduce production costs, improve safety, promote widespread adoption of hydrogen fuel cells, produce extremely low carbon emissions and enable the definition of "green hydrogen," as well as reduce storage costs and risks. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] In order to allow examiners to better understand and appreciate the features and characteristics of the present invention, preferred embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0011] A method for producing nano-metal oxides and hydrogen provided as a preferred embodiment of the present invention mainly includes the following steps:

[0012] Step A: A first reactor is prepared, and a metal material, an alcohol compound, and a first catalyst are placed in the first reactor and heated. This produces a metal alkoxide compound, simultaneously generating a large amount of hydrogen, which is then collected and utilized to achieve the hydrogen production effect. In this process, the metal material may be one of zinc, aluminum, magnesium, titanium, silicon, vanadium, copper, iron, sodium, calcium, potassium, etc., or an alloy or mixture of two or more of these metals. These metal materials may be in the form of lumps, chips, or powder, or may be waste generated in other metal refining processes. The alcohol compound in this process may be methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, or 1-butanol. Furthermore, the first catalyst in this process may be a metal chloride, bromide, fluoride, hydrochloric acid, bromic acid, or hydrofluoric acid.

[0013] Step B: Prepare a second reactor. After the reaction of the metal materials in the first reactor is completed in Step A, the remaining solution in the first reactor is introduced into the second reactor. A second catalyst and a certain amount of water are added and the mixture is heated appropriately to form powdered nanometal oxide. This produces nanometal oxide. In this process, the second catalyst can be an organic acid such as acetic acid, oxalic acid, benzoic acid, or citric acid. The particle size of the nanometal oxide produced in this process is in the range of 10 to 500 nanometers.

[0014] After producing the nano metal oxide in step B, the alcohol compound in the second reactor can be recovered by distillation and returned to the first reactor to be used as a raw material for the next reaction.

[0015] The first application example of the present invention is to coat a sulfonated polyphenylene (phenylene) ether random copolymer to form a thin film and use it as a proton exchange membrane, which is applied to hydrogen fuel cells, direct methanol fuel cells, water electrolysis membranes, vanadium liquid flow batteries, or membrane electrodes. The second application example is to prepare the sulfonated polyphenylene (phenylene) ether random copolymer as a coating solution and apply the coating solution to hydrogen fuel cells, direct methanol fuel cells, water electrolysis membranes, vanadium liquid flow batteries, or membrane electrodes. The third application example is to form the sulfonated polyphenylene (phenylene) ether random copolymer into an electrode and apply the electrode to hydrogen fuel cells, direct methanol fuel cells, water electrolysis membranes, vanadium liquid flow batteries, or membrane electrodes.

[0016] In the present invention, when the metal material is aluminum, the overall reaction scheme is as follows:

[0017] 2Al + 6CH3OH → 2Al(CH3O)3+ 3H2 2Al(CH3O)3+ 3H2O → Al2O3+ 6CH3OH

[0018] The overall net reaction is: 2Al + 3H2O → Al2O3 + 3H2

[0019] Therefore, the metal materials used in this invention can be pure metals, alloys, recycled metals, cuttings, smelting slag, etc., and as long as the metal content is 20-100%, they can be completely reacted with alcohol compounds and catalysts to produce metal oxide precursors and hydrogen. The metal oxide precursors are then converted into nanometal oxides and alcohol compounds by reacting with the catalyst and water. The alcohol compounds are then recovered and used as raw materials for the next reaction, resulting in minimal consumption during the process.

[0020] Thus, the nanometal oxides and hydrogen produced by this invention can significantly reduce production costs. If combined with a hydrogen fuel cell, a system for generating hydrogen on-site and generating electricity can be constructed, enabling applications in transportation, eliminating the need to transport large amounts of hydrogen and avoiding safety concerns and high costs. This is expected to further promote the use of hydrogen fuel cells. Furthermore, since this invention does not use fossil fuels or emit carbon-containing gases, it has very low carbon emissions and requires minimal energy, making it a form of so-called "green hydrogen." After hydrogen is generated, it can be compressed and stored in a hydrogen tank, or it can be connected to a hydrogen fuel cell or hydrogen internal combustion engine to generate electricity directly. Such a direct power generation method can be applied to various modes of transportation, such as trains, ships, buses, and small cars. This eliminates the need for these modes of transportation to carry large amounts of hydrogen and the need for numerous hydrogen stations, which are costly and have safety concerns. However, only metal materials (e.g., aluminum) and alcohol compounds need to be replenished. Finally, the materials used in the present invention are highly safe and easy to transport, making it possible to widely install refueling stations, which will contribute to the spread of transportation using hydrogen energy.

[0021] The above-described embodiment is merely a preferred example of the present invention and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Any equivalent modifications or improvements made by a person skilled in the art based on the present invention are included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen, comprising the steps of: Step A: preparing a first reactor, charging a metal material, an alcohol-based compound, and a first catalyst into the first reactor, and performing a heat treatment to generate a metal alkoxide compound; A large amount of hydrogen is simultaneously generated in step A, Step B: prepare a second reactor; after the reaction of the metal material in step A is completed, introduce the solution remaining in the first reactor into the second reactor, add a second catalyst and a certain amount of water, and apply appropriate heating to form powdery nano-metal oxide; Nanometal oxide and hydrogen production methods.

2. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step A, the metal material is one or an alloy or mixture of two or more of zinc, aluminum, magnesium, titanium, silicon, vanadium, copper, iron, sodium, calcium, and potassium.

3. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step A, the metal material is in the form of a lump, a chip, or a powder.

4. 2. The method for producing nano-sized metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein the alcohol-based compound is any one of methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, and 1-butanol.

5. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step A, the first catalyst is any one of metal chloride, bromide, fluoride, hydrochloric acid, bromic acid, and hydrofluoric acid.

6. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step B, the second catalyst is any one of organic acids, acetic acid, oxalic acid, benzoic acid, and citric acid.

7. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step B, the particle size of the powdered nano metal oxide is in the range of 10 to 500 nanometers.

8. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein in step B, after producing the nano metal oxides, the alcohol-based compound in the second reactor is recovered by distillation and returned to the first reactor for reuse as a raw material for the next reaction.

9. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein when the metal material is aluminum, the overall reaction formula is as follows: 2Al + 6CH 3 OH → 2Al(CH 3 O) 3 + 3H 2 2Al(CH 3 O) 3 + 3H 2 O → Al 2 O 3 + 6CH 3 OH

10. 2. The method for producing nano metal oxides and hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein when the metal material is aluminum, the overall net reaction equation is as follows: 2Al + 3H 2 O → Al 2 O 3 + 3H 2