Hydrogen production from water vapor in atmospheric DBD plasmas

Hydrogen as a sustainable energy carrier provides one of the promising solutions for meeting future energy demands. In this study, we consider the production of hydrogen from water using plasma splitting, i.e., a means of water splitting driven by nonequilibrium plasmas in a dielectric barrier discharge. We have developed a customized flow reactor, which is able to transport water vapor (steam) under conditions of varying pressures and temperatures and different carrier gases. The concentration of H₂O, H₂, and O₂ is monitored ex situ, with a residual gas analyzer. We report on measurements of the hydrogen production rate under pressures ranging from 600 Torr – 900 Torr, temperatures from 300 K- 450 K, flow rates of 5 sccm to 100 sccm, and in carrier gases such as Ar, N₂, and Air. Our experiments are complemented by the ongoing development of plasma kinetic mechanisms of the H₂/O₂/H₂O system for understanding key chemical reaction pathways and factors influencing the hydrogen production rate.