PEM Electrolysis: Pushing towards significant Improvements Reaching Extended Performance and Lifetime

ongoing

PEMPIRE aims to advance Proton Exchange Membrane Electrolysers (PEMELs) deployment for acieving climate neutrality by 2050, addressing systemic and technological barriers. PEMELs, known for compact design and high-pressure output, face several challenges such as high system costs and usage of critical raw materials (CRM). PEMPIRE tackles these barriers, aligning with EU priorities on circularity, digitalization, and manufacturing scale-up. The project develops a new generation of scalable, cost-efficient, and circular PEM electrolysers at TRL 6 by creating super low-Platinum Group Metal (PGM) catalyst loading in advanced membrane electrode assemblies, integrate them into optimized next-gen stack and BoP systems and adressing critical questions of durability, recyclability, circularity, economics and general sustainability. Combining experimental and digital investigations, PEMPIRE employs degradation modeling, stress testing, and predictive analytics with techno-economic and life cycle assessments to understand durability, cost drivers, and environmental impact comprehensively. PEMPIRE's approach ensures solutions to PEMEL deployment barriers within a two pillar approach. Pillar A focuses on design, validation, and demonstration of next-gen systems, emphasizing ultra-low CRM solutions, durability, scalability, dynamic operation, and academia-industry collaboration. Pillar B paves the path to exploitation by proving sustainability, engaging stakeholders, and developing dissemination, exploitation, and replication strategies with validated business models. By clustering with other ongoing EU projects like ELECTROLIFE and a strong advisory board, PEMPIRE seeks to align with PFAS-substitution goals and EU regulatory frameworks, ensuring its innovations are technically sound, industrially relevant, environmentally responsible, and deployment-ready.