• High-Performance Center will pool research on sustainable material solutions for the hydrogen economy
• The center »GreenMat4H2 – Green Materials for Hydrogen« was initiated by a decision of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft’s Executive Board
  

Hydrogen is considered one of the cornerstones for climate-neutral, sustainable energy and mobility of the future. With the adoption of the national hydrogen strategy, the German government has presented a plan of action to create the conditions for a competitive hydrogen economy in Germany. An important goal is the supply of green hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources. However, »green« materials are often not used for the production of green hydrogen. This is now to change.

New High-Performance Center in Hesse is looking into the circular management of materials and components of the hydrogen economy

A new High-Performance Center in Hesse under the leadership of the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Materials Recycling and Resource Strategies IWKS and the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF aims to develop »green« material solutions for the hydrogen economy and to ensure the reliability of hydrogen-loaded systems. For the production, storage and use of hydrogen, a multitude of elements, materials and systems are required, which have to be investigated in detail with regard to their service life and criticality and offer room for optimization and substitution. Within the High-Performance Center, the materials used are therefore evaluated with regard to their ecological footprint and their suitability on the one hand, and their integration and use in efficient and high-performance systems is made possible on the other. Sustainable alternatives for the materials used must be identified and their use in product solutions must be ensured. For this purpose, the entire life cycle of products and systems of a hydrogen economy must be considered, from production, storage and transport to usage and recycling. In addition to the materials used, components and systems are also analyzed in terms of their reliability and sustainability, and new recycling and circular economy concepts are developed. In this way, the hydrogen economy will not only become more sustainable and geopolitically independent, but also more efficient and safer.

Lifecycle of hydrogen-relevant systems: production, storage, transport and reuse

Even though the energy used to produce hydrogen comes primarily from renewable sources, catalysts and membranes in electrolyzers that contain rare earths or critical metals such as platinum, cobalt or iridium are widely used to generate hydrogen. This is where the researchers at the High-Performance Center come in at three points: On the one hand, new synthesis routes are being researched in which the critical components are substituted by recyclates, among other things. Secondly, the scientists are looking in detail at the recycling, upgrading and recovery of the technology used to produce hydrogen. Thirdly, an overall system assessment is being carried out to optimize the safety and reliability of products such as fuel cells, pipelines, electrolyzers and storage systems. The aim is to achieve the highest possible efficiency, service life and safety in components and systems that are charged with or carry hydrogen, while making the greatest possible use of resources.

Challenging storage and logistics

Hydrogen itself is well suited to absorbing energy peaks from renewable energy and storing surplus energy. However, hydrogen cannot always be used where it is produced. As part of the High-Performance Center, researchers are therefore working on various ways to optimize storage systems and their peripherals in terms of operational stability and sustainability. This is done, for example, for high-pressure tanks, solid fuel storage, in technical systems in the context of hydrogen liquefaction and for piping systems with specific requirements for corrosion resistance under additional vibrational stress. The materials, components and systems are analyzed in detail with regard to their load, stress and stressability. At the same time, the criticality of the materials used is investigated and processes are developed for substitution and upgrading, for example with recycled materials and for recycling.

Efficient use of hydrogen

The third pillar in the hydrogen life cycle is utilization. To use hydrogen electrically, fuel cells are primarily used for energy conversion, especially in hydrogen-powered vehicles. However, especially in the area of commercial vehicles and freight transport, the load capacities and service lives of fuel cells and hydrogen-carrying components have not yet been adequately investigated, which hinders targeted optimization in terms of efficiency, lightweight construction and material utilization and thus the efficient use of hydrogen technology. In addition, the components of these drive systems contain valuable technology metals such as platinum or ruthenium, which must be recovered and recycled after their end of life. The latest developments such as solid oxide, molten carbonate or polymer electrolyte fuel cells are also examined within the performance center with regard to their ecological footprint.

»We are proud to be leading this forward-looking project together with Fraunhofer LBF. With its expertise in materials science, Hesse and especially the Rhine-Main region is the ideal location for the High-Performance Center. We want to bundle this competence and make it available for the development of a hydrogen circular economy in Hesse,« explains Prof. Dr. Anke Weidenkaff, Director of Fraunhofer IWKS.

» It is important to us to involve stakeholders from business, research, politics and society in order to find practicable application solutions,« adds Prof. Dr. Tobias Melz, Director of Fraunhofer LBF.

The High-Performance Center was launched in the second quarter of 2021. In addition to research, an important task of the High-Performance Center will be the transfer of results to a high level of technology readiness, which is why partners from universities and research institutions as well as SMEs and industrial companies will be involved. Initially, the High-Performance Center will be fully integrated into the existing infrastructure of the participating Fraunhofer institutes. With the further operationalization and implementation of exploitation measures of the High-Performance Center (planned from 2022) as well as the integration of further partners, a long-term continuation in terms of rapid technology transfer to industry is intended.

Website of the high-performance center (currently only in German)

 

Scientific contacts:

PD Dr. habil. Benjamin Balke

Project Manager High-Performance Center »GreenMat4H2« at Fraunhofer IWKS

Fraunhofer Research Institution for Materials Recycling and Resource Strategies IWKS

Aschaffenburger Str. 121 | 63457 Hanau | Germany

+49 6023 32039-899

benjamin.balke@iwks.fraunhofer.de

 

and

 

Dr.-Ing. Christoph Bleicher

Coordination Hydrogen Research at Faunhofer LBF

Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF

Bartningstrasse 47 | 64289 Darmstadt | Germany

+49 6151 705-8359

christoph.bleicher@lbf.fraunhofer.de