The effect of a Lorentz-force-driven rotating flow on the detachment of gas bubbles from the electrode surface

Water electrolysis is a promising technique for energy conversion and is one of the key technologies to ensure an efficient and clean energy management in the future. However, the efficiency of this process is limited by overpotentials arising from - among other things - the high bubble coverage at the electrode surface. The influence of a magnetic field on the bubble behavior during electrolysis, in particular the bubble detachment from the electrodes, shows great potential for improving the efficiency of the process. In this study experiments and numerical simulations were carried out to investigate the effect of an electrode-normal magnetic field on the bubble detachment. Astigmatism Particle Tracking Velocimetry (APTV) was used to measure the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow field around a magnetized sphere mimicking an electrolytic bubble. Complementary simulations gave further insight into the corresponding pressure field. The experimental and numerical results demonstrate that the pressure reduction formerly assumed to be responsible for the accelerated bubble detachment in the magnetic field is too weak to cause this effect. However, the flow over an arrangement of magnets was additionally measured by Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), showing that the formation of bubble groups on the electrode surface gives rise to a stronger global flow which may have a substantial influence on the bubble behavior.