Towards re-electrification of hydrogen obtained from the power-to-gas process by highly efficient H2/O2 polymer electrolyte fuel cells

Abstract

In the power-to-gas process, hydrogen, produced by water electrolysis, is used as storage for excess, fluctuating renewable electric power. Reconversion of hydrogen back to electricity with the maximum possible efficiency is one pre-requisite to render hydrogen storage technically and economically viable. Pure oxygen is a byproduct in the electrolysis of water. The use of pure oxygen as the oxidant in a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is a possible way of increasing the conversion efficiency of hydrogen to power, by reducing the fuel cell's cathodic kinetic overvoltage, which is the most important energy loss process in low temperature PEFCs. As we demonstrate in this work, when using pure oxygen, either high efficiencies at current densities around 1 A cm⁻² are obtained or a very high power density operation (up to 1.6 W cm⁻² at cell voltages above 0.62 V) can be reached, giving the technology a broad window of operation and application. The fuel cell stack durability is assessed in accelerated long-term tests of up to 2700 h. The potential of the technology is demonstrated with the realization of a complete 25 kW prototype system delivering a peak efficiency of 69% LHV (57% HHV).