Done by: Shaishi group School Name: Mossab Nin Omair secondry school for boys This project demonstrates the fabrication and modification of membranes used in solar hydrogen production. These membranes utilizes solar energy to split any type of water (seawater, sewage, brackish, industrial wastewater) into hydrogen fuel and oxygen. Hydrogen can then be used to produce electricity via fuel cells.

1. Fabrication of Membranes for Solar Hydrogen Production
Group: Shishi
School: Musab bin omair secondary independent school
Students:
Ahmed Nasser Al-thani
Sultan Khaled alshiba
Amr obay
Supervisors:
Dr. Mohamed K. Hassan
Mr. Abdullah Al Ashraf
I am a Researcher (9th Cycle)

2. » Introduction
» Theme of the project
» Methodology
» Results and discussion
» Conclusion
» Impact on Qatar

3. » The world
 is getting warmer,
 ice caps at North pole is melting,
 sea level is increasing,
 greenhouse effect is expanding,
» All these phenomenon is based on increasing of
carbon dioxide gas in the earth’s atmosphere.
» The solution of all these problems could be
solved by the proper use of renewable energy
sources.

4. » Using sunlight as the source of energy
and fuel cell Nafion membrane to split
the water into H2 and O2
» The concern about the membrane is,
it’s high cost and short life time.
» In order to increase the membrane
lifetime, we modified it using sol-gel
method.

5. » Nafion membranes,
» 8M Nitric acid solution,
» Tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS),
» Ethanol,
» D.I. water, Beakers,
• Round-bottom flask with condenser
• Clear plastic box,
• Petri dishes,
• Measuring cylinder,
• Kimwipes.
• Vacuum oven,
• Vacuum pump,
• Hot plate,
• Heating mantle,
• Weighing machine

12. Sample No.
and immersion
timing
Initial Weight Final weight Difference in
weight
%
increases
Sample 1 (5 min) 0.9220g 1.0223g 0.1003g 11 %
Sample 2 (10 min) 0.8655g 0.8989g 0.0334g 4%
Sample 3 (20 min) 0.8625g 0.8629g 0.0004g 0.04%
Sample 4 (30 min) 0.8585g 0.8600g 0.0015g 0.17%
Standard 0.9234g 0.9234g 0g 0%

13. Sample No.
and immersion timing
Tensile strength
Sample 1 (5 min) 30.512 MPa
Sample 2 (10 min) 17.824 MPa
Sample 3 (20 min) 17.735 Mpa
Sample 4 (30 min) 24.210 Mpa
Standard 11.215 MPa
0
10
20
30
40
1 2 3 4 5
TensileStrength(MPa)
Sample No.
Tensile Strength

14. Sample 2Sample 1 Sample 3
Sample 4 Standard

15. Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3

16. Sample 4
Standard

17. -1.00E-05
0.00E+00
1.00E-05
2.00E-05
3.00E-05
4.00E-05
5.00E-05
6.00E-05
7.00E-05
8.00E-05
9.00E-05
1.00E-04
-2.00E+00 0.00E+00 2.00E+00 4.00E+00 6.00E+00 8.00E+00 1.00E+01 1.20E+01
Current(I)
Voltage(V)
I-V curve
sample-5
Sample-4
sample-3
sample-2
sample-1

18. » We successfully fabricate the membrane
» The 5 min immersed membrane showed the best results
˃ Tensile strength increased 19 MPa more than before
˃ SEM micrograph showed the presence of most silica particles
˃ EDX verified the presence of silicate
˃ Current-Voltage results showed slight resistivity change
» We are optimistic that the life time of the modified membrane has
increased than before.

19. » Reduce the CO2 emission
» Proper utilization of powerful sunlight
» Environmental protection, sustainability which are the basis of
“Qatar 2030 National Vision” could be achieved by broaden the
research and development on this field.

20. Acknowledgment
We are very thankful to our teacher, supervisors for their dedication on
proper guiding in this research project. We also convey our gratuity to the
partners of Al-Bairaq program (UNESCO, Qatar National Committee of
education, culture and science), sponsors of Al-Bairaq program (Ras Gas,
Maersk Oil and Shell), CAM and CLU for their support during the project.