Next-generation cost-effective and highly efficient water electrolyser for green hydrogen generation

R&D Focus Areas:
Electrolysis

Lead Organisation:
Curtin University

Partners:
Blackstone Minerals Limited

Status:
Active

Start date:
2022

Completion date:
2025

Key contacts:
Zongping Shao: zongping.shao@curtin.edu.au

Funding:
Contract-based research

Project total cost:
Not applicable

Project summary description:
This project is focused on achieving high power-to-fuel conversion efficiency in membrane electrolyser cells. This may uncover cost-effective materials for highly efficient water splitting. Basic techniques include the synthesis of highly active electrode materials, the design of membrane electrode structures, electrolyser cell assembly, electrolyte feeding system, and performance optimization of single-cell and stack.

Special emphasis will be placed on the design of electrodes fabricated with non-precious electrocatalysts to completely replace the precious metals in electrolyser cells, seeking to break the barrier of cost reduction of this technology.

Related publications and key links:
Li, A., Kong, S., Guo, C., Ooka, H., Adachi, K., Hashizume, D., … Nakamura, R. (2022). Enhancing the stability of cobalt spine! oxide towards sustainable oxygen evolution in acid. Nature Catalysis, 5(2), 109-118. doi:10.1038/s41929-021-00732-9

Lindquist, G. A., Xu, Q., Oener, S. Z., & Boettcher, S. W. (2020). Membrane Electrolyzers for Impure-Water Splitting. Joule, 4(12), 2549-2561. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joule.2020.09.020

Park, J. E., Kang, S. Y., Oh, S.-H., Kim, J. K., Lim, M. S., Ahn, C.-Y., … Sung,Y-E. (2019). High-performance anion-exchange membrane water electrolysis. Electrochimica Acta, 295, 99-106. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2018.10.143

Xu, X., Pan, Y., Ge, L., Chen, Y., Mao, X., Guan, D., … Shao, Z. (2021). High-Performance Perovskite Composite Electrocatalysts Enabled by Controllable Interface Engineering. Small, 17(29), 2101573. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/ smll.202101573

Higher degree studies supported:
One PhD student over 3.5 years is supported.

 

January 2023