Durable Membrane Electrode Assemblies for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzer Systems Operating at High Current Densities

Lettenmeier, Philipp; Wang, R.; Abouatallah, Rami; Helmly, Stefan; Morawietz, Tobias; Hiesgen, Renate; Kolb, Svenja; Burggraf, Fabian; Kallo, Josef; Gago, Aldo; Friedrich, K. Andreas

doi:10.1016/j.electacta.2016.04.164

Cited by 140 publications

(96 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…5a and b show a progressive increase in performance (decrease of E cell ) of these cells compared to the initial one. This phenomenon was previously observed for other stacks as well and the increase is mostly attributed to MEA aging effects46, which suddenly stop after the first 500 h (Figure S5a) in which the PEM electrolyzer unit was shut-down on purpose.…”

Section: Discussion Of Resultssupporting

confidence: 78%

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Low-Cost and Durable Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzers

Lettenmeier

Wang

Abouatallah

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

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116

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Cost reduction and high efficiency are the mayor challenges for sustainable H2 production via proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis. Titanium-based components such as bipolar plates (BPP) have the largest contribution to the capital cost. This work proposes the use of stainless steel BPPs coated with Nb and Ti by magnetron sputtering physical vapor deposition (PVD) and vacuum plasma spraying (VPS), respectively. The physical properties of the coatings are thoroughly characterized by scanning electron, atomic force microscopies (SEM, AFM); and X-ray diffraction, photoelectron spectroscopies (XRD, XPS). The Ti coating (50 μm) protects the stainless steel substrate against corrosion, while a 50-fold thinner layer of Nb decreases the contact resistance by almost one order of magnitude. The Nb/Ti-coated stainless steel bipolar BPPs endure the harsh environment of the anode for more than 1000 h of operation under nominal conditions, showing a potential use in PEM electrolyzers for large-scale H2 production from renewables.

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Section: Discussion Of Resultssupporting

confidence: 78%

“…If the tests would have been carried out at 2 A cm −2 , then a stack temperature of approx. 55–60 °C would be achieved46. Yet, we opted for a more conservative 1 A cm −2 due to the following.…”

Section: Discussion Of Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low-Cost and Durable Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzers

Lettenmeier

Wang

Abouatallah

et al. 2017

Sci Rep

Self Cite

116

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“…Most of the literature is focused on the degradation phenomena related to the CCM. [88][89][90][91][92][93][94] Typical membrane degradation originates from thermal, chemical and mechanical stressors present during operation. 95 Polymer membranes, usually PFSA membranes, e.g.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Critical Review—Identifying Critical Gaps for Polymer Electrolyte Water Electrolysis Development

Babic

Suermann

Büchi

et al. 2017

J. Electrochem. Soc.

415

347

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Although polymer electrolyte water electrolyzers (PEWEs) have been used in small-scale (kW to tens of kW range) applications for several decades, PEWE technology for hydrogen production in energy applications (power-to-gas, power-to-fuel, etc.) requires significant improvements in the technology to address the challenges associated with cost, performance and durability. Systems with power of hundreds of kW or even MWs, corresponding to hydrogen production rates of around 10 to 20 kg/h, have started to appear in the past 5 years. The thin (∼0.2 mm) polymer electrolyte in the PEWE with low ohmic resistance, compared to the alkaline cell with liquid electrolyte, allows operation at high current densities of 1-3 A/cm 2 and high differential pressure. This article, after an introductory overview of the operating principles of PEWE and state-of-the-art, discusses the state of understanding of key phenomena determining and limiting performance, durability, and commercial readiness, identifies important 'gaps' in understanding and essential development needs to bring PEWE science & engineering forward to prosper in the energy market as one of its future backbone technologies. For this to be successful, science, engineering, and process development as well as business and market development need to go hand in hand. In 2015, the global primary energy consumption was 153 PWh, 1 corresponding to an average rate of energy conversion of 17 TW. About 30% (∼6 TW) of this is used for electricity generation, which yields around 2.8 TW of electrical power (24 PWh per year). Around two thirds of the electricity is generated from fossil fuels, hydropower contributes 16%, nuclear power 11%, and other renewables (such as solar and wind) only 6.7%.1 Solar (photovoltaics) and wind power have a combined installed capacity of about 660 GW (in 2015).2 Electricity supply based on a significant share of these "new renewables" is associated with large discrepancies between supply and demand, owing to the intermittent nature of these primary energy sources. Hence, solutions for the grid-scale storage of electricity need to be developed and implemented. The electrochemical splitting of water (electrolysis) is a clean and efficient process offering interesting prospects to store large amounts of excess electricity in form of chemical energy ('power-to-gas' concept). 3,4 The produced hydrogen and oxygen can be used to regenerate electricity in periods of low production and high demand or serve as clean transportation fuel for fuel cell electric vehicles. Therefore, water electrolysis is a key technology in future sustainable energy scenarios, since hydrogen as an energy 'vector', i.e., as a universal energy carrier, could promote the decarbonization of the energy economy, or even become its backbone in the context of a 'hydrogen economy'.5 Moreover, the produced hydrogen can be used to methanate CO 2 from suitable sources, such as biogas plants, to produce synthetic natural gas (SNG), which can be injected and stored in the natural gas network. 6...

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“…[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] However, some research groups such as Rozain et al, 13,14 Lettenmeier et al 15 and Siracusano et al 5,16 among others have studied EIS of PEMECs in further detail, but most often at low current densities in the activation region of the iV-curve, where the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) current density is very low. [5][6][7][8]13,14,16,17 Only a few research groups have reported EIS measured at higher current densities in the linear region of the iV-curve during the OER.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrochemical Characterization of a PEMEC Using Impedance Spectroscopy

Elsøe

Grahl‐Madsen

Scherer³

et al. 2017

J. Electrochem. Soc.

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In this study, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is applied in combination with cyclic voltammetry (CV) and current density -cell voltage curves (iV-curves) to investigate the processes contributing to the total impedance of a polymer electrolyte membrane electrolysis cell (PEMEC). iV-curves were linear above 0.35 A cm −2 implying ohmic processes to be performance limiting, however the impedance spectra showed three arcs indicating three electrochemical reactions at these conditions not to be purely ohmic, but also to have capacitive properties. A hypothesis that the composite IrO x /Nafion anode catalyst layer causes two of these arcs with a constant sum of resistance and current constrictions cause the third arc, is suggested. This hypothesis implies that the total differential cell resistance at current densities above 0.35 A cm −2 is purely ascribed to protonic resistance in Nafion in this type of PEMEC. The interest in renewable electrical energy obtained from e.g. wind turbines and solar cells have increased over the past years. However, the demand of electrical energy from society does not always correlate with the renewable electrical energy production, and a method to store the excess electrical energy for later use is needed. One such method is electrolysis of water into hydrogen and thus converts electrical energy into chemical energy bound in the hydrogen molecules, and thereby the energy can be stored. PEMECs have the ability to operate at high current densities, which reduces the operation costs.

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Durable Membrane Electrode Assemblies for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzer Systems Operating at High Current Densities

Cited by 140 publications

References 57 publications

Low-Cost and Durable Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzers

Low-Cost and Durable Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolyzers

Critical Review—Identifying Critical Gaps for Polymer Electrolyte Water Electrolysis Development

Electrochemical Characterization of a PEMEC Using Impedance Spectroscopy

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