Impact of short-term intermittent operation on experimental industrial PEM and alkaline electrolyzers

Clean and sustainable hydrogen production can be achieved by using electrolysis when powered with renewable energy sources. Yet, integrating intermittent operation poses a challenge, given that most industrial electrolyzers are currently designed for steady operation. While intermittency significantly influences system operation and performance, there is still a scarcity of comprehensive studies investigating these effects. Moreover, standardized methods or test protocols for thoroughly assessing these impacts are lacking. Addressing this gap, the proposed study introduces an experimental approach to consistently evaluate the short-term performance of both proton exchange membrane (PEM) and alkaline industrial systems operating intermittently. The findings indicated no significant impacts on the key performance indicators of the two industrial PEM and alkaline electrolyzers in the short term when comparing constant and intermittent operation at a same equivalent mean load. • No significant impact of intermittent vs. constant operation at equivalent mean load. • Comparable results across two electrolysis technologies and operational scales. • Hydrogen purity meets expectations in all tested scenarios. • The impact of the mean electrical load is dominant over load fluctuations. • Slight deviation from constant operation attributed to system fluidic response.