Electrochemical Membrane Reactors for Sustainable Chlorine Recycling.docVIP

Membranes 2012, 2, 510-528; doi:10.3390/membranes2030510 OPEN ACCESS membranes ISSN 2077-0375 /journal/membranes Review Electrochemical Membrane Reactors for Sustainable Chlorine Recycling Tanja Vidakovic-Koch 1,*, Isai Gonzalez Martinez 2, Rafael Kuwertz 3, Ulrich Kunz 3, Thomas Turek 3 and Kai Sundmacher 1,2 1 Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems, Process Systems Engineering, Sandtorstrasse 1, Magdeburg 39106, Germany; E-Mail: sundmacher@mpi-magdeburg.mpg.de 2 Chair for Process Systems Engineering, Otto von Guericke University, Universit?tsplatz 2, Magdeburg 39106, Germany; E-Mail: gonzalez@mpi-magdeburg.mpg.de 3 Institute of Chemical Process Engineering, Clausthal University of Technology, Leibnizstr. 17, Clausthal-Zellerfeld 38678, Germany; E-Mails:kuwertz@icvt.tu-clausthal.de (R.K.); kunz@icvt.tu-clausthal.de (U.K.); turek@icvt.tu-clausthal.de (T.T.) * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: vidakovi@mpi-magdeburg.mpg.de; Tel.: +49-391-6110-319; Fax: +49-391-6110-553. Received: 23 May 2012; in revised form: 29 June 2012 / Accepted: 4 July 2012 / Published: 30 July 2012 Abstract: Polymer electrolyte membranes have found broad application in a number of processes, being fuel cells, due to energy concerns, the main focus of the scientific community worldwide. Relatively little attention has been paid to the use of these materials in electrochemical production and separation processes. In this review, we put emphasis upon the application of Nafion membranes in electrochemical membrane reactors for chlorine recycling. The performance of such electrochemical reactors can be influenced by a number of factors including the properties of the membrane, which play an important role in reactor optimization. This review discusses the role of Nafion as a membrane, as well as its importance in the catalyst layer for the formation of the so-called three-phase boundary. The influence