Multiphysics Modeling and Performance Optimization of CO 2 /H 2 O Co-Electrolysis in Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cells: Temperature, Voltage, and Flow Configuration Effects

Rui Xue, Jinping Wang (), Jiale Chen and Shuaibo Che
Additional contact information
Rui Xue: School of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing Institute of Technology, Nanjing 230011, China
Jinping Wang: School of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing Institute of Technology, Nanjing 230011, China
Jiale Chen: School of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing Institute of Technology, Nanjing 230011, China
Shuaibo Che: School of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing Institute of Technology, Nanjing 230011, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-22

Abstract: This study developed a two-dimensional multiphysics-coupled model for co-electrolysis of CO 2 and H 2 O in solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) using COMSOL Multiphysics, systematically investigating the influence mechanisms of key operating parameters including temperature, voltage, feed ratio, and flow configuration on co-electrolysis performance. The results demonstrate that increasing temperature significantly enhances CO 2 electrolysis, with the current density increasing over 12-fold when temperature rises from 923 K to 1423 K. However, the H 2 O electrolysis reaction slows beyond 1173 K due to kinetic limitations, leading to reduced H 2 selectivity. Higher voltages simultaneously accelerate all electrochemical reactions, with CO and H 2 production at 1.5 V increasing by 15-fold and 13-fold, respectively, compared to 0.8 V, while the water–gas shift reaction rate rises to 6.59 mol/m 3 ·s. Feed ratio experiments show that increasing CO 2 concentration boosts CO yield by 5.7 times but suppresses H 2 generation. Notably, counter-current operation optimizes reactant concentration distribution, increasing H 2 and CO production by 2.49% and 2.3%, respectively, compared to co-current mode, providing critical guidance for reactor design. This multiscale simulation reveals the complex coupling mechanisms in SOEC co-electrolysis, offering theoretical foundations for developing efficient carbon-neutral technologies.

Keywords: solid oxide electrolysis cell; CO 2 co-electrolysis; multiphysics simulation; electrochemical reaction engineering; renewable energy conversion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/15/3941/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/15/3941/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:15:p:3941-:d:1708577

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().