University of Sydney Nano Institute | Hydrogen Peroxide on Demand

Small and remote users may face transport and storage constraints when buying bulk hydrogen peroxide. My thesis examined modular electrochemical production as an alternative, asking which technical and operating assumptions would matter to its assessment.

I developed the performance and cost framework from published electrochemical data, engineering assumptions and cost inputs. The work linked the cell model to component costs and replacement schedules, with an example demand-to-module sizing workflow and a conventional anthraquinone-supply comparison framework.

Faraday-law production relationships, area-based stack costing, capital recovery and component lifetime schedules. The supply comparison was a conceptual assessment with illustrative assumptions, rather than three independently validated operating simulations.

• Linked current density, active area, voltage and assumed Faradaic efficiency to electrical power and peroxide production in Excel.
• Built electrode-area-based costs for membranes, diffusion layers, catalysts and corrosion-resistant hardware, then connected annualised capital, utilities and component replacement.
• Compared grid, solar-only without batteries, and solar with grid backup in terms of utilisation, intermittency and installed-capacity requirements.

The deliverable was an assessment framework that makes the links between power supply, operating time and component replacement visible. The scenario discussion explains the utilisation challenge of solar-only operation and the role of grid backup in maintaining operation when solar is unavailable.

• Performance and cost framework

  The thesis methodology (§§3.2–3.4) and the accompanying performance, capital-cost and replacement worksheets document the model structure.

• Electricity-supply scenarios

  Thesis §4.3 and Table 10 document the grid, solar-only and hybrid comparison. The capacity factors are illustrative assumptions.

This was a literature-based modelling study, not experimental or plant validation. It does not establish a verified production cost or commercial advantage. Long-duration performance, hourly solar dispatch and a full life-cycle assessment are outside the case’s scope.