CZTS Nanoparticles as Cost Efficient Catalysts for Producing Green Hydrogen
Location
Oyate Hall
Event Website
https://2026undergraduateresearchsy.sched.com/event/2Ix8h/czts-nanoparticles-as-cost-efficient-catalysts-for-producing-green-hydrogen
Start Date
15-4-2026 6:00 PM
End Date
15-4-2026 8:00 PM
Description
Hydrogen gas is produced to be used as feedstock, fertilizer, and fuel. Traditional hydrogen production produces “gray hydrogen” in a process that uses and releases fossil fuels into the atmosphere. One way to produce “green” hydrogen is with renewable energy technologies that produce hydrogen gas using electrolysis without emitting fossil fuels. In electrolysis, the hydrogen atoms bonded to oxygen in a water molecule are split to produce hydrogen. A typical catalyst for this process would be a precious metal like palladium, which can be costly. In order to make green hydrogen production more affordable, an alternative catalyst composed of CZTS nanoparticles was synthesized. CZTS nanoparticles were then analyzed using a method called cyclic voltammetry in order to determine how effective our new catalyst was in comparison to palladium. While initial experiments using the CZTS catalyst to replace ones made from precious metals were not promising, there is a potential for the CZTS nanoparticles to be applied as semiconductors in solar cells.
Publication Date
2026
CZTS Nanoparticles as Cost Efficient Catalysts for Producing Green Hydrogen
Oyate Hall
Hydrogen gas is produced to be used as feedstock, fertilizer, and fuel. Traditional hydrogen production produces “gray hydrogen” in a process that uses and releases fossil fuels into the atmosphere. One way to produce “green” hydrogen is with renewable energy technologies that produce hydrogen gas using electrolysis without emitting fossil fuels. In electrolysis, the hydrogen atoms bonded to oxygen in a water molecule are split to produce hydrogen. A typical catalyst for this process would be a precious metal like palladium, which can be costly. In order to make green hydrogen production more affordable, an alternative catalyst composed of CZTS nanoparticles was synthesized. CZTS nanoparticles were then analyzed using a method called cyclic voltammetry in order to determine how effective our new catalyst was in comparison to palladium. While initial experiments using the CZTS catalyst to replace ones made from precious metals were not promising, there is a potential for the CZTS nanoparticles to be applied as semiconductors in solar cells.
https://digitalcommons.morris.umn.edu/urs_event/2026/posters/10