Towards Low-cost and Efficient Hydrogen Production by PEM Water Electrolysis - Design and Performance Optimization for a High-pressure Stack

摘要

Water electrolysis, where electrical energy is used to break water into hydrogen and oxygen, is regarded as an important component in a future energy industry as hydrogen is ideally suited to be a major component of the requisite storage and carrier of renewable energies. Alkaline water electrolyser are applied for more than 100 years m industrial applications but due to several advantages proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers are an emerging technology with a growing market share. However, main challenges of the PEM technology are high costs associated with expensive materials and the durability of cells and stacks. With ongoing technological development it is expected that PEM electrolysis systems become a competitive option to alkaline systems in the next years.