Electrolysis of Direct Seawater: Challenges, Strategies, and Future Prospects†

Abstract

The use of renewable sources such as solar, ocean, geothermal, and wind energy to drive water electrolysis reactions to obtain green and clean hydrogen fuels is one of the important paths to achieve sustainable energy development. At present, most water electrolysis technologies need to conduct corresponding pre-processing, such as diluting water sources and purifying dehydration, which will greatly increase operating costs. The development of direct seawater electrolytic process can effectively solve the above problems. Here, we review the latest progress of the electrode materials and catalysts of the direct electrolysis process of seawater, and discuss how to design high activity and high-selective electrode materials for water electrolysis with familiar impurities (such as chloride, metal ions and biological organisms) existing in the future.