GSS EU Science Funding Gateway

Proposals should address the following:

• Design of new cells and/or stacks based on e.g. metal supported cells/stacks, cells with integrated interconnect/current collector/electrode and/or metal-based monolith cells/stacks and/or intrinsically more robust cell/stack design/assembly, and validation in short stack;
• The short stack based on 5 cells with an active area of minimum 25 cm2 per cell should be operated under representative conditions of the targeted application(s) to evaluate its performance and durability over minimum 1000 hours of continuous testing and 2000 hours of accumulated testing;
• Effect of rapid thermal cycling and load cycling on voltage degradation should be investigated. The testing should be in line with protocols set-up by the JRC;
• Fluid dynamics and multi-physics modelling should be used to determine the optimal cell and stack architectures considering thermal management within the stack and optimising its compactness;
• Increased current density of the cells should be obtained by e.g., designing thinner electrolytes and/or new electrodes with improved materials/architectures;
• Corrosion stability of the metal-based components should be validated in relevant operating conditions, in particular for the steam side of the electrolyser, and if needed, improved by development of protective coatings;
• Degradation mechanisms of the cell/stack components should be identified with respect to temperature and load including in dynamic conditions, ripples and transients;
• The cell and stack manufacturing methods should be based on processes that have the potential to be scaled-up, automatised and mass-manufactured at a later stage;
• Techno-economic evaluation of the steam electrolyser integrated in given application(s) and considering economy of scale will provide the Levelised Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) and will be used to provide insights into relevant business models. The CAPEX of the novel stack concept should be compared to state-of-the-art SOEL stacks as well as other electrolyser technologies such as PEM and alkaline.