A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers
Abstract Alkaline water electrolysers are ideal for gigawatt-scale hydrogen production due to the usage of non-precious metal and low-cost raw materials. However, their performances are modest with the separated electrode and diaphragm structure which can date back to more than 100 years ago. Here w...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Communications Engineering |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s44172-025-00344-2 |
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| author | Zhuang Xu Yanying Liu Xiaobo Cheng Yunshan Shang Yongtao Wang Jing Wang Wenshi Li Guangli He |
| author_facet | Zhuang Xu Yanying Liu Xiaobo Cheng Yunshan Shang Yongtao Wang Jing Wang Wenshi Li Guangli He |
| author_sort | Zhuang Xu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Alkaline water electrolysers are ideal for gigawatt-scale hydrogen production due to the usage of non-precious metal and low-cost raw materials. However, their performances are modest with the separated electrode and diaphragm structure which can date back to more than 100 years ago. Here we report a catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance of alkaline water electrolysers. The transport resistance of OH- ions is reduced and the electrochemical surface area of catalysts is enlarged by more than forty fold, representing more than 40% increase in hydrogen production rate or as much as 16% reduction in energy consumption. The electrolyser with our catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly delivers current densities as high as 1 A cm−2 at 1.8 V or 2 A cm−2 at 2 V and shows good stability after more than 1000 hours of operation. Therefore, the catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly route is promising for the development of high-performance and efficient alkaline water electrolysers. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-fa3d66a6fa204118bfff463d4c492468 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2731-3395 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Engineering |
| spelling | doaj-art-fa3d66a6fa204118bfff463d4c4924682025-01-26T12:36:01ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Engineering2731-33952025-01-01411910.1038/s44172-025-00344-2A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysersZhuang Xu0Yanying Liu1Xiaobo Cheng2Yunshan Shang3Yongtao Wang4Jing Wang5Wenshi Li6Guangli He7Hydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyHydrogen and Ammonium Energy R&D Center, National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon EnergyAbstract Alkaline water electrolysers are ideal for gigawatt-scale hydrogen production due to the usage of non-precious metal and low-cost raw materials. However, their performances are modest with the separated electrode and diaphragm structure which can date back to more than 100 years ago. Here we report a catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance of alkaline water electrolysers. The transport resistance of OH- ions is reduced and the electrochemical surface area of catalysts is enlarged by more than forty fold, representing more than 40% increase in hydrogen production rate or as much as 16% reduction in energy consumption. The electrolyser with our catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly delivers current densities as high as 1 A cm−2 at 1.8 V or 2 A cm−2 at 2 V and shows good stability after more than 1000 hours of operation. Therefore, the catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly route is promising for the development of high-performance and efficient alkaline water electrolysers.https://doi.org/10.1038/s44172-025-00344-2 |
| spellingShingle | Zhuang Xu Yanying Liu Xiaobo Cheng Yunshan Shang Yongtao Wang Jing Wang Wenshi Li Guangli He A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers Communications Engineering |
| title | A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| title_full | A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| title_fullStr | A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| title_full_unstemmed | A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| title_short | A catalyst-coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| title_sort | catalyst coated diaphragm assembly to improve the performance and energy efficiency of alkaline water electrolysers |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s44172-025-00344-2 |
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