NewHydrogen is looking to replace iridium in proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers with a more stable, non-precious, metal-based oxygen evolution reaction catalyst (OER).

This makes the overall electrolysis process significantly cheaper.

Read more: NewHydrogen aiming to lower the cost of green hydrogen production

The research has revealed that the low cost and high durability of the new catalyst made it a good candidate for commercial water electrolysis systems operating at high current densities.

As well as this, recent research activities focused on further modification of the catalyst structure and optimised loading conditions which resulted in significant improvements of the OER catalytic activity as well as higher stability that extends the estimated life of the catalyst by an additional 50%.

Spencer Hall, Chief Operating Officer of NewHydrogen, said, “Prior to scaling up the process for studies with a prototype electrolyser in late 2022, researchers will continue to explore additional improvements to both the OER and the HER catalysts to maximise the overall performance of an actual water electrolysis device.

“While these updates are more technical in nature, we will continue to share the technology objectives and critical steps of the process with the public and broader capital markets.”