SBIR/STTR
Advanced Passive Liquid Feed PEM Electrolyzer, Phase I
Project Introduction
Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) water electrolyzers have undergone continuous development for the generation of oxygen and hydrogen for commercial, military and space applications since the 1970's. Unfortunately, conventional technology developed over this time period has required a complex balance of plant that adds to the overall weight of the system package. Research in the past two decades resulted in the creation of systems that minimized balance of plant components, but had significant current density and efficiency limitations, limiting their use. This SBIR program builds upon recent success in the development of a high-pressure electrochemical cell architecture and inserts novel water management technology to generate a passive liquid feed electrolyzer capable of operating at over 2,000 psi - and scalable to higher pressures. If successful, implementation of this new technology can save substantially on system weight with a high system operational efficiency and enhanced current density capability.
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Anticipated Benefits
The hydrogen market is huge, currently about 10 million tons/year in the U.S. alone and a multi-billion dollar business. Industrial markets, such as refineries, ammonia production, chemical plants, etc, use most of the commercial quantities of hydrogen. Most of the hydrogen is either shipped to the end user via pipeline or trucked as compressed gas, at pressures of ~2,000 psi or greater. However, other applications for the hydrogen economy, especially vehicle refueling applications, require higher pressures, up to 12,000 psi. Successful development of efficient, high pressure water electrolysis systems is critically important in meeting these developing needs. It is anticipated that the worldwide combined industrial and emerging vehicle market for hydrogen will be >100 billion dollars.
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Primary U.S. Work Locations and Key Partners
| Organizations Performing Work | Role | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
Glenn Research Center
(GRC)
|
Lead Organization | NASA Center | Cleveland, OH |
| Sustainable Innovations, LLC | Supporting Organization | Industry | East Hartford, CT |
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Organizational Responsibility
Responsible Mission Directorate:
- Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD)
Lead Center / Facility:
- Glenn Research Center (GRC)
Responsible Program:
- SBIR/STTR
Project Management
Program Director:
Program Manager:
Project Manager:
Principal Investigator:
- Trent Molter
Project Duration
Start: Feb 2011
End: Sep 2011
Technology Maturity (TRL)
| Start: | 2 |
| Current: | 2 |
| Estimated End: | 4 |
Applied Research
Development
Demo & Test
Technology Areas
Primary:
- TA 3 Space Power and Energy Storage
- TA 3.2 Energy Storage
- TA 3.2.3 Regenerative Fuel Cells
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