Green hydrogen easily and cheaply. Scientists at UWB are turning wishful thinking into reality

Lower industrial emissions, clean fuel, and an alternative to natural gas: green hydrogen holds promise. But production is still costly. Researchers at the University of West Bohemia’s Faculty of Applied Sciences are developing cheaper methods using water, sunlight, and copper.

Green hydrogen is the future, according to scientists, not only in Czechia but also abroad. In the industry, for example, this raw material is expected to significantly reduce emissions, which aligns with the EU's climate targets. However, producing green hydrogen, i.e., ecological hydrogen, remains too expensive. The Faculty of Applied Sciences of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen (FAV UWB) is trying to change this. Scientists at the Department of Physics are researching materials and processes that not only speed up the production of eco-friendly fuel but also make it significantly cheaper.

Physicist Jan Vosejpka is also working on developing suitable technology. He produces green hydrogen via photoelectrochemical water splitting. This involves using sunlight and a semiconductor, specifically a glass plate covered with a layer of copper oxide. "The whole process is based on a semiconductor that is immersed in water and exposed to sunlight. It absorbs this solar radiation and uses the energy to break water molecules apart. By adding a small amount of electrical energy, we can increase the performance and efficiency," explained Vosejpka. According to him, the H2O water molecule then easily and ecologically breaks down into H2 hydrogen molecules and O2 oxygen molecules. "We have known that hydrogen can be produced photoelectrochemically since the 1970s, when this technology was first demonstrated, albeit with very low efficiency. Since then, scientists have had the difficult task of significantly increasing this efficiency," added the physicist. He believes that a suitable semiconductor material is the right way forward.

Vosejpka is a doctoral student in plasma physics and thin films. He also worked on researching and improving copper oxide films during a month-long internship at the Research Institute for Advanced Materials at Jaume I University in Spain, supported by the European Colosse project. His supervisor, Jiří Čapek from FAV, also sees potential in his work. "The project of photoelectrochemical production of green hydrogen fits into the long-term strategy of our research center, where we are engaged in the development of advanced materials," said Čapek. According to him, the center is also developing many other technologies: "We are also working on hydrogen detection, we are working on transparent conductive layers, for example, for solar panels, and we are also developing so-called smart windows that change their permeability to thermal radiation based on the internal temperature of the room."

The project to produce green hydrogen more cheaply is still in the research phase, but scientists expect their technology to have a significant impact on the economy. Currently, gray hydrogen produced from fossil fuels is widely used, for example, in the production of agricultural fertilizers, oil, and steel. It is cheap, but emissions are too high. Green hydrogen would significantly reduce these emissions. In transportation, it could eventually replace batteries in electric cars, and is expected to be used mainly in trucks, shipping, and, in the future, aviation. The energy sector sees it as an environmentally friendly alternative to natural gas for both households and gas plants.

However, according to Jan Vosejpka, there is still a long way to go before the technology for producing cheaper green hydrogen from FAV UWB can be used industrially. The semiconductor that is supposed to break down water, and with it the entire system around it, must meet many physical, chemical, and economic parameters at the same time, which is said to be a significant challenge.