Hydrogen Production from Wastewater Degradation on a Rotating Hole-Arranged Boron-Doped Diamond Anode

An electrochemical system using a rotating hole-arranged boron-doped diamond (HABDD) film anode was designed for wastewater degradation. Meanwhile, in a reciprocal process, a foam nickel (FNi) cathode was employed for hydrogen evolution using the ions liberated from the HABDD. The HABDD was custom-made using an MWCVD device and characterized by SEM, Raman and electrochemical measurement. Some wastewater was tested on the HABDD anode to examine its electrochemical performance. The efficiency of the electrochemical system was evaluated by COD removal rate and hydrogen production yields. The influence of the rotating and flowing rates of the electrolyte on electrochemical performance was discussed. The rotating HABDD with dynamic three-dimensional flowing paths provided a high mass transfer, which promoted the overall performance of the wastewater mineralization. Meanwhile, the ions released from the anode to the cathode improved the hydrogen generation performance on the cathode. The hydrogen production efficiency in relation to the electrochemical oxidation process was studied in terms of the COD change and treatment time.