Research on the electrochemical degradation and hydrogen generation of Fraxinus mandshurica by polyoxometalate

ABSTRACT

The efficient utilization of wood waste is important for protecting the environment and solving the energy shortage problem. Taking Fraxinus mandshurica (FM) as an example, polyoxometalate (POM) was used as a catalyst for cyclic redox in an H-type electrolytic cell, where wood was oxidized to valuable small-molecule chemicals at the anode and hydrogen was generated at the cathode. The system successfully recycles energy, simultaneously converting biomass to chemical and electrical to hydrogen. Furthermore, the effects of various factors on the reaction were also investigated to obtain the optimal electrochemical conversion results for wood waste. At the optimal conditions, the FM degradation rate of 56.1%, with aromatic organic and carbonyl compounds as the main products, and the average Faraday efficiency of hydrogen generation can reach 93%, saving about 40% of energy consumption compared to water electrolysis at 0.1 A cm⁻². Therefore, this electrochemical conversion method provides a new potential pathway for the application of wood waste.

KEYWORDS:

• Wood waste
• degradation
• hydrogen
• electrochemical
• polyoxometalates

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/15567036.2023.2205360

Additional information

Funding

All authors acknowledge the financial support from the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. 2572021DJ07), the support from the 111 Project (B20088), the Platform for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program (No. 202110225413), and the Postdoctoral Foundation of Heilongjiang Province.

Notes on contributors

Jiayue Ma

Jiayue Ma is a postgraduate student in chemistry at Northeastern Forestry University. She is conducting research on biomass energy use. She has published her research papers in international journals.

Fengrong Gong

Fengrong Gong is a postgraduate student in chemistry at Northeastern Forestry University. She is conducting research on cellulosic biomass application. She has published her research paper in international journals.

Xiuyuan Ma

Xiuyuan Ma is a postgraduate student in the Department of Chemistry at Nanjing University. His research focuses on the degradation of lignin. He graduated from the Chemistry major at the Aulin College of Northeast Forestry University. He has published a research paper in international journals.

Lihui Jiang

Lihui Jiang is a postgraduate student in Materials and Chemical Engineering. He is working on the construction of cellulose hydrogel systems. He has published his research papers in international journals. He is studying Materials and Chemical Engineering at Northeast Forestry University.

Ting Wang

Ting Wang is a research scholar in the department of Chemistry , Northeastern Forestry University. He is conducting the functional transformation of material-based materials. He has published over 30 research papers in international journals.