Flyer and Brochures - Hydrogen Technologies and Electrical Energy Storage

The term Power-to-Gas (PtG) describes the conversion of electrical energy (power) into chemical energy (gas) via water electrolysis. The produced hydrogen gas can be used both energetically (e.g. as fuel) and as a feedstock (e.g. in industry). Also the configuration of PtG plants has to be optimized in order to operate them economically.

Fuel cells will play a significant role in the future energy system. They will be needed, for example, for storage and mobility solutions. Yet, so far, fuel cell production
know-how and capacity are limited in Europe. Fraunhofer ISE has been conducting research in fuel cells and fuel cell production technology for almost three decades. The Institute has focused especially on the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) technology as the core of the proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell.

The electrochemical splitting of water in electrolyzers is a clean and efficient process to generate hydrogen and oxygen. If electricity from renewable energy sources is used, green hydrogen can be generated as a universal fuel that can be stored easily and utilized as required in different applications of the energy economy, transport sector or the chemical industry. Given the strongly fluctuating and steadily increasing supply of electricity from renewable energy sources, hydrogen can promote a reliable energy supply and even enable long-term or seasonal storage in future energy systems.

Qualified measurement data serve as the basis for successful product development, and objective test results as the basis for successful marketing.

A detailed understanding of the coupled electro-chemical and thermo-dynamic processes in a fuel cell is a prerequisite for a cost effective and reliable design. We offer a scientifically based characterization of cell components, single cells, fuel cell stacks and peripheral systems. The results are optimized designs, operation strategies and validated models on both the cell and stack level.

The increasing contribution of renewables to the energy mix presents a challenge for the storage and match of supply and demand of these intermittent energy sources. One mechanism to store this electrical energy on a large scale and overcome the intermittency of solar and wind power generation, is to produce dense liquid energy carriers. The so called “Power-to-Liquid” technology (PtL) is based on the catalytic conversion of H₂ (e.g. from H₂O electrolysis) and CO₂ (e.g. captured from industrial flue gas, biomass conversion processes or air). This also stabilizes the grid frequency.

Fuel cells are highly complex electrochemical systems. The conversion of chemical into electrical energy involves gas flow and diffusion, phase change processes, charge transport and heat transfer among others. To develop reliable fuel cells and operation strategies, a detailed understanding of these processes and behavior of the singular components is necessary.

Hydrogen production by water electrolysis is a clean and efficient approach to convert and store renewable electricity in large amounts. In particular Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) water electrolysis offers several advantages by the coupling with renewable energy sources.