AUSTRIAN PEM ELECTROLYSIS TEST BENCH AS A MARKET-READY COMET INNOVATION
Quelle: HAINZL Industriesysteme GmbH
Building on many years of experience in electrolysis stack development, HyCentA Research GmbH designed a test bench with advanced development functionalities that go beyond the current state of the art and provide a powerful platform to advance electrolysis stack technology. Owing to its convincing technical performance, a licensing agreement was concluded with the company HAINZL, under which the test bench is now offered to the market as a commercial product.
Within the COMET Centre project MemGen, extensive experience with test benches in lower power ranges was systematically analyzed, and based on this work the requirements for the new test bench were defined. Particular emphasis was placed on the needs associated with the further development and scaling of electrolysis stacks. A key feature is the design of the test bench for very high current densities of up to 8,000 A, combined with the capability for electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. This enables an analytical technique that had previously been largely confined to laboratory scale to be scaled up to a power range relevant for industrial applications. The system is complemented by a wide range of high-precision sensors and analytical tools, including fluoride monitoring for degradation analysis as well as water and gas analysis for the detection of impurities at trace concentration levels.
Test Bench Contributes to a Sustainable Energy Future
Hydrogen produced by electrolysis will be a central component of our future energy system. Global expansion plans for electrolysis plants, together with the requirements for efficient and safe hydrogen production, make the continued development and scaling of electrolysis technologies essential. Scaling PEM electrolyzers to higher power levels, larger cell areas, and longer lifetimes is crucial for the economic deployment of green hydrogen. Until now, however, independent testing capabilities above 100 kW—particularly for industrial short stacks—have been lacking.
The developed test bench is designed for full-size short stacks up to 160 kW. The objective was to create a flexible, highly functional platform tailored to the needs of stack manufacturers. The test bench enables testing of short stacks with active areas exceeding 1,600 cm², current densities above 4 A/cm², and currents of up to 8,000 A.
This way, the test bench closes a market gap in the independent and precise testing of PEM electrolysis stacks. It allows a robust assessment of performance, efficiency, and degradation behavior under industrially relevant conditions and makes a measurable contribution to the efficient and sustainable production of hydrogen on a large industrial scale.
Test Bench Offered as a Commercial Product
In parallel with its use as a research infrastructure, successful technology transfer to the market was achieved. The design, software, and methodology of the test bench were licensed to HAINZL Industriesysteme GmbH, which has integrated the test bench into its product portfolio and offers it commercially. This has enabled HAINZL to further expand its activities in the hydrogen sector.
Project partners
- Institute of Thermodynamics and Sustainable Propulsion Systems, TU Graz, Austria