Why an AEM Electrolyzer is Longer Lasting and More Efficient

by | Oct 11, 2018 | Science And Technology

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Those who hope to save the planet know that they must focus on everything from reducing the carbon footprint to find ways to help eliminate renewable energy curtailments. The latter is becoming more and more relevant as the balance of traditional and renewable energies shifts. Curtailments translate to great waste, and watching the green grid suffer. The good news is that water electrolyzers are becoming an optimal solution for storingway to store that energy or use it in production of feedstocks that when combined with via CO2 recycling can result in renewable fuels and chemicals. The AEM Electrolyzer from Dioxide Materials represents the very latest in this technology, promising a far more efficient and scalable solution.

In a recent study about “New Cathode Materials for the AEM Electrolyzer”, researches indicated that any “AEM should combine the positive qualities of the Alkaline Water Electrolysis and the proton exchange membrane (PEM) Electrolysis – compactness, environmentally friendly, effectively and being economically priced.” They went on to say that there is a need to improve substrate materials, cathode separators and overall performance to get the best results.

In other words, they felt that the current state of affairs was lacking. However, this report was released a few years before the AEM Electrolyzer and other breakthrough technologiesgear from Dioxide Materials hit the markets.

They provide buyers with access to a complete alkaline anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers offering all of the refinements itemized by the researchers in the study described, plus more. Theirs features corrosion resistant anode and cathode flow fields MEA with base metal catalysts, metal gas diffusion layers, O-ring seals, and Teflon gasketing. It can also use their patented Sustainion® membranes.

These are imidazolium functionalized styrene polymer membranes that offer superior conductivity and high current densities at low voltage.  Dioxide Materials™ is now offering Sustainion® anion exchange membranes enabling alkaline water electrolyzers with up to 2.3 A/cm² current at 2.0 V with base metal catalysts and 60 degrees Cwith stability for thousands of hours in 1M KOH. They are seen as offering physical mechanical stability useful within many possible settings.

They were the subject of a formal study and the results were quite astonishing, stating that “one can double the current output of an alkaline water electrolyzer by using Sustainion® X37 membranes.” Compared to a long list of competitor’s membranes, they outperformed them all, finding that the “cell with the Sustainion® X37 membrane was very stable. The voltage to maintain 1 A/cm2 rose only 3–5 μV/h over a 2000 hr run.”

If an AEM electrolyzer is part of your plan for helping to end renewable energy curtailments, decrease the size of your carbon footprint, store energy, or replace a PEM electrolyzer (getting similar to better performance) this option from Dioxide MaterialsTM has proven itself superior.