Low-Cost and High-Performance Anion-Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis Stack Using Non-Noble Metal-Based Materials

With increasing hydrogen demand, the development of a low-cost and high-performance anion-exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE) stack is crucial. Here, two AEMWE models using all non-noble metal-based components were developed. Three components of the membrane electrode assembly─a porous transport layer (PTL), an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalyst, and a hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst─were examined to be substituted for a non-noble metal. The results revealed that stainless steel felt and carbon paper were the anode and cathode PTLs, respectively, exhibiting the highest and most durable performance. Additionally, nickel–iron (NiFe) was selected as the most applicable OER catalyst. Further, low-loading platinum and nickel–iron oxide (NiFeOx) were optimized as suitable HER catalysts. For a single cell, the resulting AEMWEs showed outstanding performance of 4633 and 1231 mA cm–2 at 2.1 V, with stable performance for 500 h. Further, they exhibited a higher performance relative to their cost than all noble metal AEMWEs. High performances were also observed for 5-layer stacks, in addition to stable durability and energy conversion efficiency. This work supports the commercialization of a low-cost, high-performance, and durable AEMWE stack.