HYDROGEN PRODUCTION FROM BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMS UNDER DIFFERENT ILLUMINATION CONDITIONS: PHOTOBIOREACTOR PROPOSAL

Photobiological hydrogen production can be obtained by biological systems under sun irradiation. Certain algae and bacteria can produce H2 under suitable conditions. Algae pigments absorb solar energy; enzymes in the cell act as catalysts to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. There are many research activities studying hydrogen production from biological systems. These studies show that the efficiency (energy produced from hydrogen divided by solar energy) of such systems can be estimated to be 10%. This value has to be increased for a large scale hydrogen production. The effect of different artificial illumination conditions on H2 production was studied for green algae cultures (Chlamydomonas reinardtii). Results will be used to design an high efficiency photobioreactor for a large scale hydrogen production