Research Advances Towards Low Cost, High Efficiency PEM Electrolysis

Dr. Katherine Ayers

Presented by: Larry Moulthrop

NHA 2010, Long Beach, CA

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Outline

• Proton Capabilities– Strong product history– Advanced technology and reliability

• Near Term Strategy– System development– Materials research

• Recent Advances and Future Directions

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Capabilities

• Complete product manufacturing & testing

• Containerization and hydrogen storage solutions

• Turnkey product installation for industrial and energy applications

• World-wide sales and service

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Power PlantsLaboratories SemiconductorsHeat Treating

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• New laboratory line also launched at Pittcon 2010• Over 1200 commercial units currently fielded

S Series H Series StableFlow®

HOGEN® Hydrogen Generators Hydrogen Control Systems

Commercial Industrial Products

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Specialty Products

FuelGen line HP products (2400 psi electrolysis)

Indoor and outdoor versions

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Proven Cell Stack Reliability

Projected Cell Stack Life

1.4

1.8

2.2

2.6

3.0

0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 35,000 40,000 45,000 50,000

Operating Time (Hours)

Average Cell Potential

(Volts, 50oC)

10 µV/cell hr Decay Rate30 µV/cell hr Decay Rate

3-Yr Life (27,000 hr) 5-Yr Life (45,000 hr)

15 µV/cell hr Decay Rate

4 µV/cell hr Decay Rate

Cell Stack End of Life Voltage

25-cell stacks1200 ASF (1.3 A/cm2)200 psi H2 / 10 psi O2

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Product Strategy• Leverage strong history and technology base to

provide reliable customer solutions • Address real world technology problems for

commercial and military applications – Increased H2 generation capacity for fueling and

industrial applications– Materials research towards lower cost, higher

efficiency electrolyzers– High pressure, integrated solutions for small fueling

applications

• Balance business goals with stewardship of environmental and educational responsibility

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$5/kg H2 pathway: Electrolysis scale upHamilton

Sundstrand

TARDEC Phase 2

TARDEC Phase 1

Missile Defense Agency

0.23 ft2 Stack Development

CostReduction of 0.23 ft2

Stack

65 kg/day System

Development

ProtonInternal

R&D funding(+$2 Million)

0.6 ft2 Cell Design & Validation

150 kg/day System

Development

Scale-up0.6 ft2 High Efficiency

Stack

DOETrade Study

DOEUNLV

Subcontract

DOEBipolar Plate

Program

Cost Reduction & Efficiency

Improvements

500 kg/day System

Development

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Volumes and stack advancements lead to further cost reductions

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HOGEN® C Series• Maximum Capacity: 30 Nm3/hr H2

• Prototypes operational with full commercial availability in Q1 2011.• 5 times the hydrogen output of the H-Series yet only 1.5x the foot print.• Uses stack platform developed for Navy with Hamilton Sundstrand.• Also allows entry in to higher capacity heat treating, food processing and

glass manufacturing.

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0.6 ft2 Stack Development• Bipolar plate design• Demonstrated 200 and 425 psi operation

– Single and multi cell stacks tested

1.751.801.851.901.952.002.052.102.152.202.252.30

0 1000 2000 3000 4000

Ce

ll P

ote

nti

al

(V)

Run Time (hours)

0.6 SQFT 3 Cell (1032 amps, 425 psi, 50oC)

Cell 1 Cell 2 Cell 3

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$-

$2

$4

$6

$8

$10

FuelGen65, current stack

150 kg/day system, next

generation stack

150 kg/day system,

advanced stack*

$/kg

H2,

H2A

mod

el

*Assumes volumes of 500 units/year

Hydrogen Cost Progression

, product

introduction

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Materials Technology Roadmap

Membrane

6-12 months 1-2 years 2-3 years 3-5 years

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Original <12 months 1-3 years >3 years

Cel

l co

st

Implementation timing

Cell materialsFrames and gasketsSeparatorsO2 flow fieldsH2 flow fieldsAnode catalystCathode catalystMembrane

Catalyst

Flow fields

PFSA materials, reduced thickness

Process improvements/reduced loading

Higher activity catalysts

Next generation materials

Other parallel activities:Increased operating temperature/pressureLarger active area designsAutomation/high speed processing

New membrane chemistries, further thickness reduction

Alternate deposition techniques and engineered nanostructures

Supplier qualification, near term cost reductions

Bipolar plate, next generation design

Integrated frame/flow field, part count reduction

Alternate materials/ precious metal reduction

Unitized parts

• Overall Strategy: maintain projects in varying stages of development

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Current <1 year 1-3 years >3 years

% B

asel

ine

cost

Implementation Timeline

MEABalance of cellBalance of stack

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Collaboration Strategy• Develop and strengthen relationships with key materials

companies, universities, and national labs– Leverage proposal collaborations and access to new materials

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Cell Polarization Model

• Largest opportunities for efficiency improvements are in membrane and anode catalyst development

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500

% O

verp

ote

nti

al

Current Density, mA/cm2

Activation and Ohmic Overpotentials

Cathode Activation

Anode Activation

Ionic

Electronic

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Catalyst Research• Reduce overpotential through

improved oxygen evolution catalysts– Improve utilization: higher surface area– Optimize composition: mixed metal oxides

0.00

1.00

2.00

3.00

4.00

5.00

6.00

7.00

8.00

9.00

10.00

Baseline,nominal

T1, atm 1 T1, atm 1,treated

T1, atm 2,treated

T2, atm 1 T2, atm 1,treated

T2, atm 1,treated

T2, atm 2 T2, atm 2,treated

T3, atm 2

Catalyst

No

rmal

ized

Su

rfac

e A

rea

vs. B

asel

ine Surface area vs.

synthesis and post treatment conditions

Baseline

Design-Expert® Software

Cell potential - 1 A/cm2Design Points1.92

1.57

X1 = A: IrX2 = B: RuX3 = C: Ta

A: Ir1.000

B: Ru1.000

C: Ta1.000

0.000 0.000

0.000

Cell potential - 1 A/cm2

1.57

1.57

1.60

1.65

1.65

1.70

1.80

1.902.00

Contour plot: oxide composition vs. voltage

3M nanostructured

thin film electrode

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Catalyst Process Optimization• Achieved 55% reduction in anode loading, 66% reduction in

cathode loading with no performance loss

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

2.00

2.20

0 100 200 300 400 500

Ce

ll P

ote

nti

al

(V)

Run Time (hours)

Catalyst Loading Test: 160 Amps, 80oC

Baseline

20% loading reduction

55% loading reduction

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Impact on MEA Costs

Relative Cost

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Membrane Research Directions

Membrane support structure

Reinforced membranes: e.g. WL Gore, Dupont

Hydrocarbon membranes (e.g. Hickner, Penn State)

Proton Focus:

Alternate approach

0.00

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Membrane thickness (microns)

No

rmal

ized

res

ista

nce

Standard PFSA MEAs, commercial supplier

Reinforced membrane MEAs

No impact of reinforcement material on membrane conductivity

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Durability vs. Thickness

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Efficiency Improvements

1

1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

1.5

1.6

1.7

1.8

1.9

2

2.1

2.2

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000

Pote

ntial

(Vol

ts)

Current Density (mA/cm2)

Demonstrated >5000 hours

Next Generation Materials - projected

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Flow Field Improvements

• Prototype flowfields fabricated using production tooling and techniques

• Reduction in part count• Improvement in cell robustness

Separator

H2 Frame

H2 Flowfield

O2 Frame

SeparatorO2 FlowfieldO2

Frame

H2 Frame

MEA

H2O H2OO2

H2

H2O

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Next Generation Materials

• Approach: reduced cost base material with protective coating

• Test wafers imbedded within modified cell parts

• Preliminary results:– Slight corrosion observed at

defect sites– Stable operational

performance

300 µm

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In-Cell Performance: Potential Stress Testing

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• Maintained stable performance above 2 Volts for 500 hr testT

emp

eratu

re (°F)

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Cell Cost Reductions

Relative Cost

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Conclusions

• Proton is leveraging robust product development history in advanced designs– Enables rapid time to market and reliability on product

launch

• Strong materials competencies and collaborations are being applied towards cost reductions and efficiency improvements

• Pathways have been defined for meeting DOE fueling targets and customer requirements

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Funding Sources

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