CIC energiGUNE develops new sustainable materials that will facilitate more efficient and safer green hydrogen production

The READER project, included in the call for Knowledge Generation Projects of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, aims to develop a decoupled electrolyser – a fundamental part for hydrogen production through water separation – with high performance and durability, and whose manufacture does not require the use of precious metals such as platinum.

The research work is being carried out entirely at the Basque centre under the direction of Paramaconi Rodriguez, Ikerbasque Professor and head of the Electrochemical Hydrogen Technologies Research Group at CIC energiGUNE.

CIC energiGUNE, a leading Basque research centre in electrochemical energy storage and conversion and thermal energy storage and conversion, is working on the development of new sustainable materials for decoupled electrolysers that facilitate the efficient and safe production of green hydrogen, while reducing manufacturing costs and European dependence on critical materials. This research work is part of the READER project, which is managed entirely at CIC energiGUNE and has been included in the ‘Proyectos de Generación de Conocimiento’ funding programme of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.

‘READER is a unique and innovative project that will have a direct impact on the sustainable and low-cost production of green hydrogen,’ said Paramaconi Rodríguez, Ikerbasque Professor and head of the Electrochemical Hydrogen Technologies Research Group at CIC energiGUNE. ‘In fact, we are going to create a great business development opportunity for European industry, which will no longer have to depend on third countries to acquire precious metals such as those in the platinum group to manufacture electrolysers’, remarked Dr Eduardo Sánchez, co-director of the project and researcher in the field of electrochemical energy storage at CIC energiGUNE.

The READER project has two main objectives: the development of high-performance and durable decoupled electrolysers based on organic redox mediators; and the reduction of the cost of green hydrogen production through the development of platinum group metal-free catalysts.

To achieve this, the CIC energiGUNE team will implement its expertise in the fields of electrochemistry, catalysis, organic chemistry, spectroscopy and materials science to explore the unique combination of concepts and methods.
The Project has a duration of 42 months and is structured in three technical work packages (WP). Upon completion, CIC energiGUNE will be in a position to deliver a new concept of decoupling electrolyser capable of becoming an efficient and cheaper alternative to the current scarce critical metal-based catalysts, also driving the decarbonisation and energy transition process of society.