Key to improved green tech efficiency found in simple acid treatment

In Idaho, the development of new, more efficient electrochemical cells could provide a good option for carbon-free hydrogen and chemical production along with large-scale electricity generation and storage and Idaho National Laboratory scientists are overcoming several challenges, including how to make the cells more efficient and cost-effective, by using a simple process to bind materials more tightly within protonic ceramic electrochemical cells, solving a mystery that had limited the technology’s performance.

The team included researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New Mexico State University, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Just as rechargeable batteries use chemistry to store electricity for later use, PCECs can convert excess electricity and water into hydrogen. PCECs can also operate in reverse, converting hydrogen into electricity. The technology uses crystalline materials called perovskites, which are inexpensive and capable of operating at a wide range of temperatures.

Researchers in the U.S. are developing the electrochemical cells primarily for hydrogen generation, but also several other applications. The hydrogen produced by these cells can also be used as fuel for heat, vehicles, chemical production or other applications.