Hydrogen production by photocatalytic membranes fabricated by supersonic cluster beam deposition on glass fiber filters

•Photocatalytic membranes are fabricated by the innovative FlameBeam method.•FlameBeam integrates supersonic cluster beam deposition with flame spray pyrolysis.•Highly crystalline anatase TiO2, also with Pt nanoparticles, is produced in one step.•Photocatalytic membranes perform well in H2 production from ethanol/water vapors.

Photoactive membranes coated with TiO2 and Pt/TiO2 nanostructured thin films were produced by one-step deposition of gas phase nanoparticles on glass fiber filters. Pt/TiO2 nanoparticles (0–1.5 wt.% Pt content) were produced by flame spray pyrolysis, starting from liquid solutions of the Ti and Pt precursors, and then expanded in a supersonic beam to be deposited on the filters. The nanostructured coatings were composed of crystalline nanoparticles (mainly anatase phase), without any need of post-deposition annealing. The so obtained photocatalytic membranes were tested in hydrogen production by photo-steam reforming of ethanol in an expressly set-up diffusive photoreactor. The reaction rate was found to increase with increasing the Pt content in the photoactive material, up to 1.5 wt.% Pt. The use of these membranes allowed a significant increase of the hydrogen production rate compared to that obtained with the same photoactive Pt/TiO2 films deposited on a quartz substrate.