H2U Technologies has developed electrolyzer stacks that switch out pricey and rare iridium catalysts with cheap and plentiful catalyst materials as part of its strategic endeavor to lower the costs of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolyzers.
With the use of commonly accessible catalyst materials, H2U’s PEM electrolyzer stacks enable affordable production of green hydrogen. The creation of substitute catalysts is crucial because the supply of expensive platinum group metals (PGM) elements, such as iridium, a crucial catalyst for electrolyzers, is highly constrained, which will result in price hikes and shortages in the supply chain.
H2U is on target to ship its first proof-of-concept electrolyzer devices in 2023 thanks to this productive demonstration. At H2U’s lab facilities in Chatsworth, California, clients wishing to progress their green hydrogen projects will be able to see a number of working, multi-kilowatt electrolyzer stacks devoid of iridium. In order to learn more about how H2U finds the non-iridium catalysts it uses in its electrolyzers, visitors can also take a tour of the Catalyst Discovery Engine (CDE) facilities.
H2U’s CDE, which was initially created by Caltech, is used to tune the catalysts in the new electrolyzer stack. Scientists can create, define, and quantify the catalytic activity of thousands of material compositions each week using the data-driven CDE rapid-screening methodology, which is faster than any other screening method currently in use. The H2U scientists then use their knowledge of catalyst coatings, binders, and deposition techniques to investigate several alternatives for introducing the ideal materials into the electrolyzer. Independent third-party testing has been used to evaluate and certify each of the components utilized in the sample stack.
