In a multi-year Joint Development Agreement (JDA), H2U Technologies and Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. have teamed together to find new catalysts and create methods to apply those catalysts to membranes. To lower the price of proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzers, the businesses will make use of H2U's patented Catalyst Discovery Engine (CDE).
Global energy producers and suppliers are stepping up their production of electrolyzers, particularly proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzers, which are perfect for producing "green" hydrogen from renewable energy sources like wind and solar. Yet there is a significant obstacle in the way. Modern PEM electrolyzer designs rely on expensive, uncommon platinum group metals (PGMs), such as the pricey element iridium, which has a severely limited availability. That is where H2U's unique CDE is useful.
The CDE enables researchers to quickly identify and create innovative catalysts that are made of inexpensive, abundant materials rather than the current industry standard of precious metals. The search for the ideal catalyst materials is then improved upon by H2U scientists using artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML).
Tokyo Gas wants to create low-cost, high-performance, non-iridium catalysts and catalyst-coated membranes through collaboration with H2U and use of the CDE, creating a safety net against any supply chain problems. Tokyo Gas intends to use the electrolyzed hydrogen either directly or in the production of e-methane.
"We're very pleased to initiate this joint development agreement with H2U Technologies to discover and evaluate new electrocatalyst compositions," said Executive Officer, Director Dr. Hisataka Yakabe. "Undertaking electrolyzer catalyst discovery with H2U scientists presents an opportunity to leverage their unique and proprietary CDE with AI/ML capabilities and collaborate to test these low-cost, non-iridium materials in commercially relevant conditions."
"Our CDE is a great opportunity for energy suppliers, renewable hydrogen project developers, and electrolyzer manufacturers, like Tokyo Gas, to discover and develop efficient, active, and lower-cost replacements for PGM-based electrocatalysts within a joint development approach," commented Mark McGough, CEO of H2U Technologies. "The cost of producing green hydrogen today is too high and the reliance on rare and costly catalyst materials is not sustainable. Through scientific collaboration, our CDE will allow Tokyo Gas to rapidly discover novel materials so they can bring their own PEM electrolyzers to market and produce renewable hydrogen at affordable costs. We're very pleased to work with Tokyo Gas to help them accelerate the delivery of green hydrogen to their customers."