Low-Cost and High-Performance Anion-Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis Stack Using Non-Noble Metal-Based Materials

Abstract

With increasing hydrogen demand, the development of a low-cost and high-performance anion-exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE) stack is crucial. Here, two AEMWE models using all non-noble metal-based components were developed. Three components of the membrane electrode assembly─a porous transport layer (PTL), an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalyst, and a hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst─were examined to be substituted for a non-noble metal. The results revealed that stainless steel felt and carbon paper were the anode and cathode PTLs, respectively, exhibiting the highest and most durable performance. Additionally, nickel-iron (NiFe) was selected as the most applicable OER catalyst. Further, low-loading platinum and nickel-iron oxide (NiFeOx) were optimized as suitable HER catalysts. For a single cell, the resulting AEMWEs showed outstanding performance of 4633 and 1231 mA cm-2 at 2.1 V, with stable performance for 500 h. Further, they exhibited a higher performance relative to their cost than all noble metal AEMWEs. High performances were also observed for 5-layer stacks, in addition to stable durability and energy conversion efficiency. This work supports the commercialization of a low-cost, high-performance, and durable AEMWE stack. © 2023 American Chemical Society