Perovskite membrane reactor for continuous and isothermal redox hydrogen production from the dissociation of water

The redox water splitting is one of the most promising routes for sustainable hydrogen production. Towards this goal, serious technological obstacles are set: (i) by the non-isothermal operation of the redox process, that causes serious reactor construction problems, and (ii) by the need for efficient high temperature oxygen/hydrogen separation technology which is a very challenging development. In this paper, perovskite materials having the formula La_0.3Sr_0.7FeO₃ were synthesized and subsequently tested for their high temperature oxidation/reduction behavior. The redox activity of the materials in relation to the water splitting reaction has been also investigated. Dense, disc shaped membranes of the materials were synthesized and placed in a membrane reactor. Experiments at 1133 K revealed the possibility of performing the reduction and oxidation steps simultaneously and isothermally on each side of the membrane reactor. A steady-state situation was thereby achieved where hydrogen was continuously produced on one side while the material was simultaneously regenerated on the other side. The created oxygen vacancy gradient formed the driving force for a continuous flux of vacancies from the membrane reduction surface to the membrane oxidation surface. The hydrogen production rate under the particular experimental conditions estimated to be ∼47.5 cm³ H₂ (STP) m⁻² min⁻¹. It could be increased by a factor of approximately 3, up to ∼145 cm³ H₂ (STP) m⁻² min⁻¹, if the membrane reduction was enhanced with a reductant such as carbon monoxide. This approach resulted in an efficient execution of the water gas shift reaction towards high purity hydrogen production.     

Caged mitochondrial uncouplers that are released in response to hydrogen peroxide

Caged versions of the most common mitochondrial uncouplers (proton translocators) have been prepared that sense the reactive oxygen species (ROS) hydrogen peroxide to release the uncouplers 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and carbonylcyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (FCCP) from caged states with second order rate constants of 10 (±0.8) M⁻¹ s⁻¹ and 64.8 (±0.6) M⁻¹ s⁻¹, respectively. The trigger mechanism involves conversion of an arylboronate into a phenol followed by fragmentation. Hydrogen peroxide-activated uncouplers may be useful for studying the biological process of ageing.     

Flow-injection determination of hydrogen peroxide based on fluorescence quenching of chromotropic acid catalyzed with Fe(II)

Flow-injection analysis system (FIA system), which was based on Fe(II)-catalyzed oxidation of chromotropic acid with hydrogen peroxide, was developed for the determination of hydrogen peroxide. The chromotropic acid has a fluorescence measured at λ_em = 440 nm (emission wavelength) with λ_ex = 235 nm (excitation wavelength), and the fluorescence intensity at λ_em = 440 nm quietly decreased in the presence of hydrogen peroxide and Fe(II), which was caused by Fe(II)-catalyzed oxidation of chromotropic acid with hydrogen peroxide. By measuring the difference of fluorescence intensity, hydrogen peroxide (1.0 × 10⁻⁸-1.0 × 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹) could be determined by the proposed FIA system, whose analytical throughput was 40 samples h⁻¹. The relative standard deviation (RSD) was 1.03% (n = 10) for 4.0 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹ hydrogen peroxide. The proposed FIA technique could be applied to the determination of hydrogen peroxide in rain water samples.     

Localized surface plasmon resonance sensor for simultaneous kinetic determination of peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide

A new sensor for simultaneous determination of peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide using silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) as a chromogenic reagent is introduced. The silver nanoparticles have the catalytic ability for the decomposition of peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide; then the decomposition of them induces the degradation of silver nanoparticles. Hence, a remarkable change in the localized surface plasmon resonance absorbance strength could be observed. Spectra-kinetic approach and artificial neural network was applied for the simultaneous determination of peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide. Linear calibration graphs were obtained in the concentration range of (8.20 × 10⁻⁵ to 2.00 × 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹) for peroxyacetic acid and (2.00 × 10⁻⁵ to 4.80 × 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹) for hydrogen peroxide. The analytical performance of this sensor has been evaluated for the detection of simultaneous determination of peroxyacetic acid and hydrogen peroxide in real samples.     

Sensing hydrogen peroxide involving intramolecular charge transfer pathway: A boronate-functioned styryl dye as a highly selective and sensitive naked-eye sensor

The synthesis, properties and applications of a novel boronate-functioned styryl dye, BSD, as a colorimetric sensor for hydrogen peroxide is presented. The dye displayed remarkable color change from colorless (λ_max = 391 nm) to deep red (λ_max = 522 nm) in the presence of H₂O₂ and the behavior could be rationalized by the chemoselective H₂O₂-mediated transformation of arylboronate to phenolate, resulting in the release of the merocyanine dye which featured with strong intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) absorption band. The absorption increment of merocyanine at λ_max = 522 nm (? = 87000 L mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹) is linear with the concentration of H₂O₂ in the range of 1.0 × 10⁻⁷-2.5 × 10⁻⁵ mol L⁻¹ with the detection limit of 6.8 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹ under optimum conditions. There is almost no interference by other species that commonly exist due to the specific deprotection of H₂O₂ towards arylboronate group on BSD. The chromogenic sensor has been applied to the detection of trace amounts of hydrogen peroxide in rain water.     

Fluorinated polyoxadiazole for high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

For the first time a fluorinated polyoxadiazole doped with phosphoric acid as a proton-conducting membrane for operation at temperatures above 100 °C and low humidities for fuel cells has been reported. Fluorinated polyoxadiazole with remarkable chemical stability was synthesized. No changes in the molecular weight (about 200,000 g mol⁻¹) can be observed when the polymer is exposed for 19 days to mixtures of sulfuric acid and oleum. Protonated membranes with low doping level (0.34 mol of phosphoric acid per polyoxadiazole unit, 11.6 wt.% H₃PO₄) had proton conductivity at 120 °C and RH = 100% in the order of magnitude of 10⁻² S cm⁻¹. When experiments are conducted at lower external humidity, proton conductivity values drop an order of magnitude. However still a high value of proton conductivity (6 × 10⁻³ S cm⁻¹) was obtained at 150 °C and with relative humidity of 1%. In an effort to increase polymer doping, nanocomposite with sulfonated silica containing oligomeric fluorinated-based oxadiazole segments has also been prepared. With the addition of functionalized silica not only doping level but also water uptake increased. For the nanocomposite membranes prepared with the functionalized silica higher proton conductivity in all range of temperature up to 120 °C and RH = 100% (in the order of magnitude of 10⁻³ S cm⁻¹) was observed when compared to the plain membrane (in the order of magnitude of 10⁻⁵ S cm⁻¹).     

FIA-near-infrared spectrofluorimetric trace determination of hydrogen peroxide using tricarchlorobocyanine dye (Cy.7.Cl) and horseradish peroxidase (HRP)

A new kind of near-infrared fluorescence agent, tricarbochlorocyanine dye (Cy.7.Cl), had been synthesized in house and used for near-infrared spectrofluorimetric determination of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) by flow injection analysis (FIA) for the first time. The oxidation reaction of Cy.7.Cl with H₂O₂ occurred under the catalysis of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and it was studied in detail. The possible reaction mechanism was discussed. Under optimal experimental conditions, fluorescence from Cy.7.Cl displayed excitation and emission maxima (ex/em) at 780 and 800 nm, respectively. The two linear working ranges were 1.86 × 10⁻⁷ to 4.11 × 10⁻⁷ mol L⁻¹ and 4.11 × 10⁻⁷ to 7.19 × 10⁻⁶ mol L⁻¹, respectively. The detection limit was 5.58 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹ of H₂O₂. The effect of interferences was studied. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of hydrogen peroxide in rainwater, serum and plant samples.     

Determination of hydrogen peroxide by using a flow injection system with immobilized peroxidase and long pathlength capillary spectrophotometry

The development of a highly sensitive method for the determination of nanomolar concentrations of hydrogen peroxide in the liquid phase is described. This paper demonstrates for the first time a flow injection analysis (FIA) system with immobilized enzyme reactor combined with a total internal reflective cell (a liquid waveguide capillary cell (LWCC)) and spectrophotometric detection, for the development of an improved procedure for the determination of hydrogen peroxide. Moreover, the newly synthesized 4-aminopyrazolone derivative, 4-amino-5-(p-aminophenyl)-1-methyl-2-phenyl-pyrazol-3-one (DAP), is used as a color coupler in its oxidative condensation with the sodium salt of N-ethyl-N-sulphopropylaniline sodium salt (ALPS) which acts as a hydrogen donor. Immobilization of peroxidase is achieved by coupling the periodate-treated enzyme to aminopropyl controlled-pore glass (CPG) beads. The determination of hydrogen peroxide is carried out in a 0.1 M phosphate buffer and the product is monitored at 590 nm with a charge-coupled device (CCD) detector equipped with fiber optics in a fully computerized system. The interference of different species, mainly ionic, was investigated.The method permits detection down to 4 nmol l⁻¹ hydrogen peroxide (signal-to-noise ratio=3). A linear calibration graph was obtained over the range 20-700 nmol l⁻¹. The relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) at 300 nmol l⁻¹ H₂O₂ is 1.7% (n=7). The method was successfully applied for the determination of hydrogen peroxide in samples from a vat-cleaning process.     

Development of novel and sensitive methods for the determination of sulfide in aqueous samples by hydrogen sulfide generation-inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy

Two new, simple and accurate methods for the determination of sulfide (S²⁻) at low levels (μg L⁻¹) in aqueous samples were developed. The generation of hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) took place in a coil where sulfide reacted with hydrochloric acid. The resulting H₂S was then introduced as a vapor into an inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) and sulfur emission intensity was measured at 180.669 nm. In comparison to when aqueous sulfide was introduced, the introduction of sulfur as H₂S enhanced the sulfur signal emission. By setting a gas separator at the end of the reaction coil, reduced sulfur species in the form of H₂S were removed from the water matrix, thus, interferences could be avoided. Alternatively, the gas separator was replaced by a nebulizer/spray chamber combination to introduce the sample matrix and reagents into the plasma. This methodology allowed the determination of both sulfide and sulfate in aqueous samples. For both methods the linear response was found to range from 5 μg L⁻¹ to 25 mg L⁻¹ of sulfide. Detection limits of 5 μg L⁻¹ and 6 μg L⁻¹ were obtained with and without the gas separator, respectively. These new methods were evaluated by comparison to the standard potentiometric method and were successfully applied to the analysis of reduced sulfur species in environmental waters.     

Microvolume turbidimetry for rapid and sensitive determination of the acid labile sulfide fraction in waters after headspace single-drop microextraction with in situ generation of volatile hydrogen sulfide

In this work, we demonstrate the feasibility of applying headspace single-drop microextraction with in-drop precipitation for the quantitative determination of the acid labile sulfide fraction (H₂S, HS⁻, and S²⁻ (free sulfide), amorphous FeS and some metal sulfide complexes-clusters as ZnS) in aqueous samples by microvolume turbidimetry. The methodology lies in the in situ hydrogen sulfide generation and subsequent sequestration into an alkaline microdrop containing ZnO₂²⁻ and exposed to the headspace above the stirred aqueous sample. The ZnS formed in the drop was then determined by microvolume turbidimetry. The optimum experimental conditions of the proposed method were: 2 μL of a microdrop containing 750 mg L⁻¹ Zn(II) in 1 mol L⁻¹ NaOH exposed to the headspace of a 20-mL aqueous sample stirred at 1600 rpm during 80 s after derivatization with 1 mL of 6 mol L⁻¹ HCl. An enrichment factor of 1710 was achieved in only 80 s. The calibration graph was linear in the range of 5-100 μg L⁻¹ with a detection limit of 0.5 μg L⁻¹. The repeatability, expressed as relative standard deviation, was 5.8% (N = 9). Finally, the proposed methodology was successfully applied to the determination of the acid labile sulfide fraction in different natural water samples.     

A novel bimediator amperometric sensor for electrocatalytic oxidation of gallic acid and reduction of hydrogen peroxide

A novel bimediator amperometric sensor is fabricated for the first time by surface modification of graphite electrode with thionine (TH) and nickel hexacyanoferrate (NiHCF). The electrochemical behavior of the TH/NiHCF bimediator modified electrode was characterized by cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The TH/NiHCF bimediator modified electrode exhibited a pair of distinct redox peaks for NiHCF and TH with formal potentials of 0.33 V and −0.27 V vs. SCE at a scan rate of 50 mV s⁻¹ in 0.1 M NaNO₃ and 0.1 M NH₄NO₃ respectively. The electrocatalytic activity of the bimediator modified electrode towards oxidation of gallic acid with NiHCF and reduction of hydrogen peroxide with TH was evaluated and it was observed that the modified electrode showed an electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of gallic acid in the concentration range of 4.99 × 10⁻⁶–1.20 × 10⁻³ M with a detection limit of 1.66 × 10⁻⁶ M (S/N = 3) and reduction of H₂O₂ in the concentration range of 1.67 × 10⁻⁶–1.11 × 10⁻³ M with a detection limit of 5.57 × 10⁻⁷ M (S/N = 3). The bimediator modified electrode was found to exhibit good stability and reproducibility.     

Polyethyleneimine-capped silver nanoclusters as a fluorescence probe for sensitive detection of hydrogen peroxide and glucose

In this work, we utilized polyethyleneimine-capped silver nanoclusters (PEI-Ag nanoclusters) to develop a new fluorometric method for the determination of hydrogen peroxide and glucose with high sensitivity. The PEI-Ag nanoclusters have an average size of 2 nm and show a blue emission at 455 nm. The photostable properties of the PEI-Ag nanoclusters were examined. The fluorescence of the PEI-Ag nanoclusters could be particularly quenched by H₂O₂. The oxidization of glucose by glucose oxidase coupled with the fluorescence quenching of PEI-Ag nanoclusters by H₂O₂ can be used to detect glucose. Under optimum conditions, the fluorescence intensity quenched linearly in the range of 500 nM–100 μM with high sensitivity. The detection limit for H₂O₂ was 400 nM. And a linear correlation was established between fluorescence intensity (F₀ − F) and concentration of glucose in the range of 1.0 × 10⁻⁶ to 1.0 × 10⁻⁵ M and 1.0 × 10⁻⁵ to 1.0 × 10⁻³ M with a detection limit of 8.0 × 10⁻⁷ M. The method was used for the detection of glucose in human serum samples with satisfactory results. Furthermore, the mechanism of sensitive fluorescence quenching response of Ag nanoclusters to glucose and H₂O₂ has been discussed.     

Effects of microstructure of carbon nanofibers for amperometric detection of hydrogen peroxide

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) with three microstructures, including platelet-carbon nanofibers (PCNFs), fish-bone-carbon nanofibers (FCNFs), and tube-carbon nanofibers (TCNFs), were synthesized, characterized, and evaluated for electrochemical sensing of hydrogen peroxide. The CNFs studied here show microstructures with various stacked morphologies. The sizes and graphite-layer ordering of the CNFs can be well controlled. Glassy carbon (GC) electrodes modified by CNFs were fabricated and compared for amperometric detection of hydrogen peroxide. Sensors based on PCNFs/GC, FCNFs/GC, and TCNFs/GC were used in the amperometric detection of H₂O₂ in solution by applying a potential of +0.65 V versus Ag/AgCl at the working electrode. The highest electrocatalytic performance was observed for PCNFs/GC among the three types of hydrogen peroxide sensors. The amperometric response of PCNFs/GC retained over 90% of the initial current of the first day up to 21 days. The linear range is from 1.80 × 10⁻⁴ to 2.62 × 10⁻³ M with a correlation coefficient larger than 0.999 and with a detection limit of 4.0 μM H₂O₂ (S/N = 3). The relative standard deviation for detecting 1.80 × 10⁻⁴ M H₂O₂ (N = 8) is 2.1% with an average response of 0.64 μA. The significant diversity of electrocatalytic activity of the CNFs toward the oxidation of hydrogen peroxide may result from the difference of morphologies, textural properties, and crystalline structures.     

Low temperature diffusion bonding of Pd-based composite membranes with metallic module for hydrogen separation

A diffusion-bonding procedure at a low temperature, i.e. 500 °C, based on the high mobility of silver atoms was developed with a newly designed plate-and-frame type hydrogen purification membrane module consisting of a unit cell and a housing. Two membranes made of palladium and copper sputtered on polished porous nickel supports (PNS) followed by Cu-reflow at 750 °C, respectively, were assembled in a unit cell to verify that the low temperature diffusion-bonding method could be applied to gas-tight membranes. Ring-shaped silver foils with a thickness of 50 μm were placed between the membranes and the unit cell body made of nickel plate. A pair of membranes, a pair of silver foils and the unit cell body were compressed with a pair of covers and eight screws by a 17 cm long torque wrench at 12 N m. The diffusion-bonded unit cell was welded in a module housing comprised of a feed port and a retentate port by a laser-operated welder. After the module was constructed, gas-tightness tests were carried out using helium and the measured helium leakage was 8 × 10⁻⁵ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ at 0.7 MPa, which is the same as the value detected before diffusion bonding with a Viton O-ring. The hydrogen permeation test and durability test consisting of three cycles of alternately changing the temperature and transmembrane pressure difference were carried out using a single gas, hydrogen, and it was found that the hydrogen permeation flux remained constant during the durability test and that the helium leakage did not increase after the durability test.     

Development of hydrogen peroxide biosensor based on in situ covalent immobilization of horseradish peroxidase by one-pot polysaccharide-incorporated sol-gel process

A simple and reliable one-pot approach was established for the development of a novel hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) biosensor based on in situ covalent immobilization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) into biocompatible material through polysaccharide-incorporated sol-gel process. Siloxane with epoxide ring and trimethoxy anchor groups was applied as the bifunctional cross-linker and the inorganic resource for organic-inorganic hybridization. The reactivity between amine groups and epoxy groups allowed the covalent incorporation of HRP and the functional biopolymer, chitosan (CS) into the inorganic polysiloxane network. Some experimental variables, such as mass ratio of siloxane to CS, pH of measuring solution and applied potential for detection were optimized. HRP covalently immobilized in the hybrid matrix possessed high electrocatalytic activity to H₂O₂ and provided a fast amperometric response. The linear response of the as-prepared biosensor for the determination of H₂O₂ ranged from 2.0 × 10⁻⁷ to 4.6 × 10⁻⁵ mol l⁻¹ with a detection limit of 8.1 × 10⁻⁸ mol l⁻¹. The apparent Michaelis-Menten constant was determined to be 45.18 μmol l⁻¹. Performance of the biosensor was also evaluated with respect to possible interferences. The fabricated biosensor exhibited high reproducibility and storage stability. The ease of the one-pot covalent immobilization and the biocompatible hybrid matrix serve as a versatile platform for enzyme immobilization and biosensor fabricating.     

Highly permeable mesoporous silica membranes synthesized by vapor infiltration of tetraethoxysilane into non-ionic alkyl poly(oxyethylene) surfactant films

Mesoporous silica membranes were prepared on porous alumina substrates by a vapor infiltration of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) into a non-ionic poly(oxyethylene) (Brij56) surfactant film. Periodic mesostructured silica membranes were formed on both α- and γ-alumina substrates pre-treated with polystyrene. The polystyrene polymer plugged the pores of the alumina substrates and inhibited the deposition of silica in the alumina pores, resulting in the formation of a very thin silica membrane without a silica/alumina composite layer at the interface between mesoporous silica and the alumina substrates. The calcined mesoporous silica membrane showed very high nitrogen permeance (>10⁻⁶ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹). The single gas permeation was governed by the Knudsen diffusion mechanism. The durability of the mesoporous silica membrane against moisture in air was improved by a silylation with trimethylethoxysiliane.     

Contribution to vapor generation-inductively coupled plasma spectrometric techniques for determination of sulfide in water samples

Vapor generation-inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry was used for the determination of sulfide in water samples preserved by the addition of a zinc acetate and sodium hydroxide solution. Hydrogen sulfide and acid-volatile sulfides were transformed, by acidification, to a gaseous phase in a vapor generator and subsequently detected by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. Compounds interfering with iodometric titration and spectrophotometric determination were examined as potential chemical interferents. The proposed method provides results comparable to iodometric titration in the tested concentration range 0.06-22.0 mg L⁻¹. Limit of detection for the determination of hydrogen sulfide by this method is 0.03 mg L⁻¹.     

Amperometric biosensor for hydrogen peroxide based on hemoglobin entrapped in titania sol-gel film

Hemoglobin (Hb) was entrapped in a titania sol-gel matrix and used as a mimetic peroxidase to construct a novel amperometric biosensor for hydrogen peroxide. The Hb entrapped titania sol-gel film was obtained with a vapor deposition method, which simplified the traditional sol-gel process for protein immobilization. The morphologies of both titania sol-gel and the Hb films were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and proved to be chemically clean, porous, homogeneous. This matrix provided a biocompatible microenvironment for retaining the native structure and activity of the entrapped Hb and a very low mass transport barrier to the substrates. H₂O₂ could be reduced by the catalysis of the entrapped hemoglobin at −300 mV without any mediator. The reagentless H₂O₂ sensor exhibited a fast response (less than 5 s) and sensitivity as high as 1.29 mA mM⁻¹ cm⁻². The linear range for H₂O₂ determination was from 5.0×10⁻⁷ to 5.4×10⁻⁵ M with a detection limit of 1.2×10⁻⁷ M. The apparent Michaelis-Menten constant of the encapsulated hemoglobin was calculated to be 0.18±0.02 mM. The stability of the biosensor was also evaluated.     

A sensitive amperometric sensor for hydrazine and hydrogen peroxide based on palladium nanoparticles/onion-like mesoporous carbon vesicle

Onion-like mesoporous carbon vesicle (MCV) with multilayer lamellar structure was synthesized by a simply aqueous emulsion co-assembly approach. Palladium (Pd) nanoparticles were deposited on the MCV matrix (Pd/MCV) by chemical reduction of H₂PdCl₄ with NaBH₄ in aqueous media. Pd(X)/MCV (X wt.% indicates the Pd loading amount) nanocomposites with different Pd loading amount were obtained by adjusting the ratio of precursors. The particular structure of the MCV results in efficient mass transport and the onion-like layers of MCV allows for the obtainment of highly dispersed Pd nanoparticles. The introduction of Pd nanoparticles on the MCV matrix facilitates hydrazine oxidation at more negative potential and delivers higher oxidation current in comparison with MCV. A linear range from 2.0 × 10⁻⁸ to 7.1 × 10⁻⁵ M and a low detection limit of 14.9 nM for hydrazine are obtained at Pd(25)/MCV nanocomposite modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode. A nonenzymatic amperometric sensor for hydrogen peroxide based on the Pd(25)/MCV nanocomposite modified GC electrode is also developed. Compared with MCV modified GC electrode, the Pd(25)/MCV nanocomposite modified GC electrode displays enhanced amperometric responses towards hydrogen peroxide and gives a linear range from 1.0 × 10⁻⁷ to 6.1 × 10⁻³ M. The Pd(25)/MCV nanocomposite modified GC electrode achieves 95% of the steady-current for hydrogen peroxide within 1 s. The combination of the unique properties of Pd nanoparticles and the porous mesostructure of MCV matrix guarantees the improved analytical performance for hydrazine and hydrogen peroxide.     

Simulation study on the catalytic decomposition of hydrogen iodide in a membrane reactor with a silica membrane for the thermochemical water-splitting IS process

Catalytic decomposition of hydrogen iodide in a membrane reactor was investigated theoretically for the application to the hydrogen production step in the thermochemical iodine–sulfur (IS) process. Characteristics of the membrane reactor were evaluated using observed permeances of H₂ and HI in a homemade silica membrane that was prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method (selectivity of H₂/HI: 650). The effect of the H₂/I₂ selectivity on the performance of the membrane reactor was evaluated by simulation since I₂ permeance through the homemade silica membrane could not be determined so far because of the difficulty of the measurements. It was found from the simulation study that the conversion of over 0.9 would be attainable using the membrane reactor with the homemade silica membrane. Design criterion of the membrane reactor was discussed using the relationships between the ratio of reaction zone volume to the membrane surface area, the dimensionless reactor length and the conversion.