Communication—Oxalic Acid Assisted Water Electrolysis for Less Energy-Intensive Electrochemical Hydrogen Production.

The chemical-assisted electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (CAHER) emerges as a prospective energy-saving method to obtain high-purity hydrogen. Selecting suitable auxiliary reactive chemicals (ARC) for the CAHER system is vital. In this study, we propose that oxalic acid can be used as ARC of the CAHER system. Compared with water electrolysis, lower energy consumption is required for hydrogen production in the presence of oxalic acid. The anode potential needed by oxalic acid assisted water electrolysis (OAWE) is half of that of water electrolysis. For OAWE, more hydrogen is produced with the increase of oxalic acid concentration and temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]