Advanced Anion Exchange Membrane Electrolyser with 360 cm² Active Cell Area

Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis (AEMWE) has emerged as a promising technology for generating green hydrogen, particularly using intermittent renewable energy sources. AEMWE offers a compelling opportunity for cost-effective and sustainable hydrogen production by combining the advantages of traditional alkaline water electrolysis, such as the use of abundant and low-cost catalysts, with the benefits of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolysis, which includes membrane separation with pure or low-concentration alkaline water and operation at high current densities. However, the widespread commercialization of AEMWE remains in its early stages, with small-scale active cell areas (less than 300 cm²) and ongoing challenges related to performance and durability. Consequently, it is vital to develop high-performance, durable AEMWE cells with larger active areas to facilitate the broader adoption of this technology. This contribution presents our recent progress in AEMWE, focusing on the development of cells with an active area of up to 360 cm². In particular, we are advancing AEMWE technology to Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5/6, incorporating precious metal-free catalysts and advanced membranes to enhance the flexibility and efficiency of hydrogen production. As part of this effort, we have designed and experimentally tested a 100 cm² AEMWE cell and conceptualized and designed a 4-kW short-stack with a total active cell area of 1800 cm², as shown in Figure. 1, for high-pressure operation at 30 bar. Our ongoing efforts includes the laboratory testing of this newly designed stack at high pressure operation and evaluating its electrochemical performance and durability up to 1,000 h continuous operation using precious metal-free electrocatalysts.