Ion exchange membrane: future of green hydrogen?

Researchers who are developing electrolyzers for hydrogen production are rapidly turning to a membrane platform that is basically used to enhance their technology in fuel cells. His strategy: Use ion exchange membranes, which Can be more cost effective and Mix the best characteristics of traditional proton exchange membranes and alkaline approaches.

The ion exchange membrane (AEM) technique enables the selective transport of negatively charged ions between cathode and anode. In a hydrogen fuel cell, membrane helps facilitates the chemical reactions required to generate electricity. In hydrogen electrolysis, the membrane helps to divide the water by separating hydrogen from oxygen.

So far, AEM has been deployed only on a small scale. But many Akshay hydrogen companies are ready to change it. On 7 May, Ethaka, New York located Eclectro Announced Framingham, a partnership with Massachusetts-based Re -construction construction To deploy advanced AEM electrolyzers in the United States. And in March French Tire Company Michelin And many French research institutes launched Multi-year-old cooperation To develop more durable versions of these membranes as part of the expansion of michelin in Akshaya markets.

These companies, and globally, are betting on AEM technology to fulfill the long -asked promises of “Green” hydrogen produced with renewable energy. “It has long been considered a potential savior for many issues with other types of electrolysis that we have been trying to scale,” says Lindsay MotoA physicist in Darcy Partners and Director of Research, Houston, a market intelligence firm in Texas.

scaling up Green hydrogen Comes with challenges that have provided it less competitive than other hydrogen production methods. The field depends on electrolyzers, which use electricity to divide water molecules to release hydrogen. Most employ either a proton exchange membrane (PEM), which uses precious metal catalyst and polymer membranes to divide molecules, or alkaline electrolysis, which works with an electrolyte solution.

PEM can quickly ramps up and down in response to variable energy sources such as wind and solar energy, but it requires iridium, which is In limited supplyAlkaline electrolysis is less capital intensive and more installed on a large scale, but it complicates efficiency and its rigid, basic solution system design.

This has turned the groups towards AEM, which selects the option of nickel and steel for expensive metals of the pam. And when it uses a basic solution, AEM has a better capacity than alkaline electrolysis, at least on the lab scale, says motlo.

SaerBeck, Germany located Tube And Austin, Texas located Agency Offer commercial megawatt-scale AEM electrolyzers used in the industry for chemical reactions and heating. In China, Shandong Based Hygiene energy In September 2024 launchEd A kilowatt-scale AEM electrolyzer for industrial parks, community buildings and plug-pel use in transportation. However, these performance are limited in scale and maturity. AEM technology has not yet proved to be a commercial scale for continuous industrial hydrogen supply.

The AEM electrolyzer stack of ecolectro uses a PFAS-free, iridium-free membrane platform.Eclectro

Why choose AEM for green hydrogen?

Ecolectro and Re: The partnership between builds aims to reduce high costs that obstruct the scale of green hydrogen for industrial use. In addition to source of inexpensive materials for electrolyzer components, Echolectro is re -outsourcing manufacturing: build plants in New York and Pennsylvania. For membrane, Eclectro will use a proprietary mixture of chemicals with a nickel catalyst for better durability.

Cofounder and CEO says Eclectro is taking a step at once Gabriel Rodriguez-CalleroThe company’s first commercial-party units should be rebuilt this year: Rochester, Build’s design plant in New York will be 250–500 kW. Rodriguez-Callero says that his team plans to reach the MW scale in 2026.

To deploy beyond the lab scale, powering the AEM with renewal faces important engineering obstacles. The high capacity on the lab scale considers a steady flow of electricity powered by fossil fuel, but the ability to quickly respond to renewable energy has not been widely tested. The membrane durability is another challenge, as the material will face the rigid, basic conditions of the AEM. Flooroneated polymer membrane is an efficient option, but they pollute the water and introduce chemicals forever.

To resolve the membrane issue, Michelin in Clramont-French and its research partners launched one Collaboration They say alcal’hylab. Researchers will develop a new, more durable membrane using a cost-effective metal catalyst as well as a mixture of chemicals-similar models. Alcal’hylab aims to deploy this membrane in the 25-kw AEM electrolyzer stack by 2027.

“It is difficult to find the structure of a polymer which is actually compatible with these operating conditions for a long time,” says Jacks madalunoThe Director of Chemistry at the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), who will host the associate laboratory. “You get very good results at the time zero, but it decreases very quickly, very quickly.”

Can Green Hydrogen compete with renewable electricity?

Despite many research groups working on the problem, there is doubt around green hydrogen. Scientific and economic obstacles do not lend themselves to develop it on an industrial scale Meaningful investmentEven for a company like Michelin, says Joseph RomePhysicist and writer at the University of Pennsylvania Promotion about hydrogen: false promises and real solutions in the race to save climate“The fact is that they are dealing with research organizations, telling you how far they have to go,” they say.

This is true, Green Hydrogen has not yet to continue its propaganda, called Rodriguez-Callero in Eclectro. “I think the speed of adopting some of this new hydrogen market has been slower than many people,” they say. He looks at Echolectro as a meaningful step towards industrial users to compete with fossil fuel-rich hydrogen, which needs to produce it on the site.

But to go beyond this type of point-to-point replacement, Green Hydrogen still struggles to compete with renewable electricity. There is also a lack of infrastructure for long distance transportation in the industry. Romm says: “The biggest problem for AEM is that there is not just a problem in hydrogen.”