News
The final brochure of NEWELY
NEWELY project has come to an end. In order to summarise the steps done and results achieved, the Consortium decided to create an additional communication material: the final brochure!
The document consists in several sections. It starts describing the situation at the beginning of the project, the aim and objectives of NEWELY and what the prototype was intended to be. Then, the final prototye is showed in details as well as the results and impact achieved through the collaboration of the partners.
The final brochure intends to inform the different stakeholders and the general public about the story of the project, but it might also be intended as a starting point for other collaborations.
The document is based on the project visual identity that features the project as a unique and distinguishable brand, whose objective is to increase the public visibility of the project and subsequently its outcomes and facilitate the overall project goal to boost Europe’s Innovation ecosystem.
We published it in the publication page.
Have a look at it: Brochure Newely
NEWELY Project: the opening event of EMEA WORKSHOP 2023
NEWELY PROJECT: Next Generation Alkaline Membrane Water Electrolysers with Improved Components and Materials have been created.
The final public event of this European Project took place in Bad Zwischenahn (Germany), on the 20th of June 2023, with the poster exhibition opening the EMEA Workshop 2023.
Bad Zwischenahn, 20 June 2023
Last June 20th, 2023, the final event of NEWELY Project took place in Bad Zwischenahn (Germany) in the form of a poster exhibition. The event aimed to show the main results of activities carried out during the NEWELY Project.
NEWELY is a European project funded by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership and coordinated by DLR – the German Aerospace Center (Germany).
The project developed and tested components for the next generation of anion exchange membrane water electrolysers (AEMWE). These can reach twice the performance of the state of the art of AEMWE operating with very low concentration KOH feed. Additionally, a 5-cell stack with elevated hydrogen output pressure was designed and constructed.
The poster exhibition of NEWELY Project opened this year’s edition of EMEA Workshop, a high-level event which attracts top-class speakers from the field of alkaline ion exchange membranes for energy applications. It is organised annually by DLR Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics (Germany) with the support of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST, South Korea) and the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland).
The final public event of NEWELY started with the joint presentation of the Project Coordinator Aldo Gago, (group leader at DLR) with the support of Jelena Stojadinovic (founder and CEO of Membrasenz), Miriam Goll (researcher at CENmat), and Jeffrey Roth (project engineer at ProPuls and WHS). The presentation gave an overview of the main technical results focusing on the development of membrane and ionomer, of the electrodes package, and on the single cell test and stack development. The presentations were followed by a lively discussion and questions of the audience.
Then, the floor was given to NEWELY representatives who presented the activities in more details through the utilisation of posters.
Jelena Stojadinovic (Membrasenz) presented the activities related to the Membrane/ionomer development and explained the synthesis routes taken as well as the membrane and ionomer characterisation process before concentrating on the achievements reached: among others, the partner KIST filed 3 patent applications, 6 scientific publications resulted from the collaboration of partners in this field, and a start-up called TailorMem was created. It is worth mentioning that the poster of Malikah Najibah (KIST) entitled “Pre-swelling of AEM with water-based ethylene glycol solution to minimize dimensional changes in a water electrolyser” won the Best Poster Award 2023 at the EMEA workshop.
Miriam Goll (CENmat) presented the activities related to the electrode package development and highlighted the achievements reached such as (i) the development of a highly performing catalyst with η @10mA/cm2 = 215 mV for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and 116 mV for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), (ii) the reduction in potential > 300 mV through the application of Nickel porous transport layer on stainless steel substrates, (iii) the performance of 1.5 A/cm2 @ 2V by a single cell thanks to the use of electrodes prepared via the sonicated spraying device in a catalyst coated substrate (CCS) mode, and (iv) the upscaling of electrodes to 200 cm2 for the stack.
Jeffrey Roth (ProPuls) outlined the process that led to the design and realisation of the AEM test bench, which provided a suitable environment for testing of the novel materials with homogenous pressurization and smooth cell tempering. Jeffrey Roth also described how a 5-cell 200 cm² AEMWE stack for the NEWELY materials was manufactured and pre-tested for the use in long-term tests.
Frédéric Fouda-Onana (CEA Grenoble) concentrated more on the testing phase and reported that the combination of conductive membranes/ionomers and active non-platinum group metal (PGM) catalysts developed in the project leads to high-performance AEMWE, surpassing the NEWELY target (above 1A/cm² @2V at 50°C and 0.1 M KOH).
Finally, Nicolas Richet (Air Liquide) reported the main results from the techno-economic analysis and the life-cycle assessment. He reported that the compact design and minimal corrosion of AEMWE provide it with an advantage over AWE and that the NEWELY AEMWE system, with its pressure vessel, can deliver hydrogen at higher pressures compared to the alkaline water electrolysis (AWE) system analysed in this study, which operates at atmospheric pressure. NEWELY AEMWE system is successful in substituting tradition PGM based catalyst and AEMWE system benefits from non PGM materials unlike proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) system, which is also reflected in the lower H2 costs as the lower initial capital costs.
Almost 100 stakeholders from academia and industry sectors participated in the event. The poster session stimulated the interest of the participants and encouraged the dialogue on electrolysers and membrane among different stakeholders and experts in the field.
“AEMWE technology has a lot of potential for changing the market of green hydrogen” – says the Project Coordinator Dr. Aldo Gago, of the German Aerospace Center – “Contrary to PEMWE technology, AEMWE does not require precious metals to be used as catalysts for the electrochemical reactions and the membranes and ionomers do not contain fluorine, thus their synthesis is environmentally friendly. The project NEWELY has proven in the laboratory that the AEMWE can deliver high performance and durability. The next step is upscaling the developments to demonstrate that AEMWE can indeed compete with the existing electrolysis technologies.”
Download the PDF of the Press Release at this link.
The last meeting for NEWELY Consortium
The seventh project meeting of NEWELY Project took place last Tuesday, on the 20th of June 2023.
For this last gathering the Consortium met in Oldenburg (Germany), and was hosted by the Project Coordinator – the German Aerospace Center (DLR).
NEWELY has reached its end and this meeting has been not only an opportunity for the Consortium to check the final steps to be taken before the end of June and evaluate the numerous results achieved, but also an occasion to strenghten relationships and speak about possible new projects to do together.
Following the internal meeting, a video-call with the Project Officer took place where all WP Leaders presented the activities and results, asking for suggestions and receiving the feedback from the PO.
After the meetings, the final public event of NEWELY Project took place… but we will write about this soon.
Stay tuned!
NEWELY presented at the HYDROGEN DAYS 2023
The Hydrogen Days are an annual appointment since 2007.
This conference is an excellent frame for updates on hydrogen and fuel cell technologies and represents the best setting to show the latest advances in research, projects, and products in the Czech Republic, Visegrad regions, and Central Europe.
Three are the main topics:
1. Development and deployment in the energy sector
2. Development and deployment in transportation
3. Cross cutting and overarching issues
The event took place last 29-31 March 2023 and the University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCTP), represented the NEWELY Project!
Michaela Plevová gave the presentation “Effect of the membrane structure on performance of the membrane-electrode assembly in an alkaline environment”.
Dita Hronová focused on the “Verification of the bifunctional character of Co0.83Ni0.17Se2 – a non-platinum catalyst for reversible alkaline fuel cell”
Check the website to know more: https://www.hydrogendays2023.cz/
The programme, at this link.
Dr J.STOJADINOVIC GAVE A TALK AT THE TRAINING WORKSHOP OF SOLARCHEM PROJECT
Dr Jelena Stojadinovic from the Partner Membrasenz, gave a technical talk at the Training Workshop Nr. 5 of the Solar2Chem project, organised by EPFL, in Lausanne (Switzerland), last 24 May 2023.
Dr. Stojadinovic presented the topic “Membranes in electrochemical cells for production of green hydrogen and green chemicals” , and the NEWELY case study was presented.
For more information: click 2023 05 S2C training workshop EPFL agenda
The AEM Hub organised the “Webinar on AEM Water Electrolysis: Challenges and Perspectives”
The AEM Hub met again to share results and updates on the the developments of the respective projects!
CHANNEL, NEWELY and ANIONE organised a Joint Webinar on the Challenges and Perspectives of the AEM Water Electrolysis. The event took place on 9 March 2023 and kicked off with the welcome of the Project Officer, Nikolaos Lymoeropoulos, and with short presentations from each of the project Coordinators (Thulile Khoza for CHANNEL, Aldo Gago for NEWELY and Antonino Aricò for ANIONE) who presented a condensed summary of achievements reached by the respective projects.
The webinar was then divided in 4 Panel Sections dealing with the challengs and perspectives of AEMWE but from different point of you.
The first section focused on the Elctrocatalysts, the second developed around the AEM and Ionomers, the third pointed the attention on the MEA preparation and performance, and the final section concerned the stack and other aspects.
Check the agenda for details on the panelists and moderators!
The AEM Hub is a cluster of three EU projects working to improve anion exchange membrane water electrolysers for green hydrogen production. The production of green hydrogen and the use of the AEM WE technology are central to decarbonising the EU’s energy system.
NEWELY Consortium meets in Trento
The sixth project meeting of NEWELY project took place today, 2 March 2023.
This time the Consortium met in Trento (Italy), and was hosted by Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK).
The end of the project is approaching and the meeting has been an opportunity for the Consortium to get fundamental updates on the latest developments of the project, and discuss the next steps to be taken.
The activities are rapidly proceeding, lots of technical targets have been achieved already but the Consortium is working to complete successfully all the activities, and to be ready to show the final results during the EMEA Workshop, which will take place in June 2023.
During the day, the Partners have presented the state of art of each task. Finally, the researchers of the Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK, Matteo Testi, Francesca Panaccione e Giacomo Gottardi guided the Consortium through a Laboratories tour.
Stay tuned!
SAVE THE DATE: EMEA2023
Save-the-Date for the EMEA2023: Workshop on Ion Exchange Membranes for Energy Applications organised by DLR Institute of Engineering Thermodynamics (Germany) with the support of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST, South Korea) and the Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland).
Material developments and ion exchange membrane-based systems for energy applications will be discussed by representatives from research and industry with the focus set on anion exchange membranes. In addition to invited and contributed talks a poster exhibition offers scientists and especially young researchers and students the opportunity to present their work. A price for the best poster will be awarded.
The opening presentation will be held by NEWELY project, followed by a Get-together and the conference dinner will provide additional opportunities for lively scientific exchange in a familiar atmosphere.
The workshop will take on site in Bad Zwischenahn, between 20 and 22 of June 2023.
- Registration until May 5th, 2023
- Abstracts for contributed talks until March 31st, 2023
- Abstracts for poster presentations until March 31st, 2023
A new scientific paper published in the Journal of Membrane Science
The article is the result of the collaboration between the researchers of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, KIST (Korea) and the University of Chemistry and Technology, UCTP (CZ). Among the authors there are also other Korean Institutions: KIST School, the Kyung Hee University, the Yonsei University and the Korea University.
The article is entitled “Pre-swelling of FAA3 membranes with water-based ethylene glycol solution to minimize dimensional changes after assembly into a water electrolyser: Effect on properties and performance” and can be downloaded from the publication sections.
Check the Scientific Publications web page. You can find the whole list of scientific articles written within the field of NEWELY!
Abstract:
Stability of membranes in electrolysers is challenged by dimensional changes, when dry membranes are assembled and wetted when the electrolyser starts. Assembling wet membranes is challenging because water evaporates during handling. To minimize dimensional changes, FAA3 membranes are pre-swollen in aqueous ethylene glycol (EG, boiling point 197°C). Membranes partially dissolve in 100 vol% EG, and swell excessively in 70 vol%. Swelling in 50 vol% shows smallest dimensional changes during handling (shrink) and re-immersion in KOH solution (swelling, mimicking start of the electrolyser). These membranes show about 30% higher conductivity (ca. 65 mS cm−1). Tensile strength and Young’s Modulus decrease exponentially with the amount of absorbed EG solution, while elongation at break increases. In addition to the improved dimensional stability during handling, EG treated membranes perform better in the electrolyser than untreated membranes. In a stability test over 120 h at 250 mA/cm2, all membranes show an initial drop in the cell voltage and then stabilize.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12100989
Read about it at this link.
UCPT and NEWELY participated in numerous activities in 2022!
In 2022, NEWELY project partners presented the project results and analysis in numerous occasion and to different stakeholders in distinct geographical areas.
Last week, we wrote about the participation of the partner KIST in several events in USA, Canada and South Korea.
Now, it is the time to write about the University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCTP), Czech Republic.
In March 2022, Michaela Plevová and Dita Hronová participated in the Hydrogen Days 2022, the 12th International Conference on Hydrogen Technologies.
Dita Hronová participated in the poster session with “Tuning electric conductivity of non-platinum catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline fuel cell”. Michaela Plevová presented the work “Comparison of various anion selective materials and catalysts used as components in membrane-electrode assembly for alkaline water electrolysis” and received the Best Presentation Award!
The conference is an excellent frame for updates on hydrogen and fuel cell technologies and represents the best setting to show the latest advances in research, projects and products in the Czech republic, Visegrad regions and Central Europe. More information on the event and the program at this link.
One month later, in April 2022, UCPT participated in the 9th International conference on chemical technology with the abstract “Influence of the catalyst particle size and crystalline phase on electrocatalytic performance of Co0.83Ni0.17Se2 for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline fuel cell”.
The ICCT is organised by the Czech Society of Industrial Chemistry and give the occasion to familiarize professionals with the key challenges and problems of chemistry and energy in the international context. More information at this link.
In June, the University of Chemistry and Technology Prague participated in the Workshop on Ion Exchange Membranes for Energy Applications, with the poster “Influence of the anion-selective polymer membrane on the properties of the catalyst coated membrane-electrode-assembly” and in the 241st ECS Meeting with the abstract “High-performance alkaline water electrolysis using anion-exchange membrane-electrode assembly with catalyst coated membrane and platinum free catalysts”.
In August, Michaela Plevová and Dita Hronová participated in the ISE Regional Meeting, of the International Society of Electrochemistry. Hronová presented the abstract “Influence of the carbon support on the catalytic properties of selenide-based electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction reaction in an alkaline fuel cell”, while Plevová presented the poster “The effect of the type of anion-exchange material, polymer binder and catalyst on the performance of alkaline water electrolyser”.
The ISE Regional Meeting provide a platform to present and discuss the most recent developments in all fields of electrochemistry including analytical applications, bioelectrochemistry, electrochemical energy storage, material electrochemistry, molecular electrochemistry and physical and theoretical electrochemistry. More information at this link.
Finally, last October, UCPT participated in two events.
J. Hnát presented the work “Catalyst Coated Membranes for Alkaline Water Electrolysis” at the 6th International conference on nanomaterials fundamentals and applications, which resulted in a Book of Abstract that can be found here.
Hronová presented the poster “Determining the influence of the carbon support on the electrocatalytic performance of Co0.83Ni0.17Se2 catalyst for oxygen” at the European Summer School of Electrochemical Engineering organised by the University of Southampton.
In the publications section – presentations it is possible to find the whole list of abstracts and posters presented within the field of NEWELY
Three conferences for KIST and NEWELY in 2022
What a year for NEWELY!
Thanks to the participation of the partners in several conferences, the project results and analysis have been presented in different occasions and to a wide-range of stakeholders. Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) also participated in several conferences.
In May 2022, Dirk Henkensmeier was invited to give a talk on “Polybenzimidazole-based membranes and their use in flow batteries and electrolysers” at the Conference on Polymers for Fuel Cells, Energy Storage, and Conversion, in Napa (USA).
The conference brings together the polymer community and fuel cell scientists.to discuss about the challenges in these related areas, especially the development of new polymers for membranes, structure and morphology investigations, structure-property relationships and effects on ionic conductivity, durability and lifetime studies. More information on the event and the program at this link.
One month later, in June 2022, KIST participated in the 241st ECS Meeting with the abstract “Polybenzimidazole and its use in Energy Storage and Conversion”.
The event of The Electrochemical Society brings together the most active researchers in academia, government, and industry to discuss the areas of electrochemistry and solid state science and technology.
More information at this link.
Finally, in August, KIST participated to the conference Materials Challenges in Alternative and Renewable Energy 2022 (MCARE).
More information at this link.
with the poster “PBI nanofiber mat-reinforced anion exchange membranes with covalently linked interfaces for use in water electrolysers”, wich resulted from the numerous collaboration for fiber-reinforced AEM membranes between KIST and UCTP in the NEWELY project and beyond. The abstract can be read and downloaded in the publications section.
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In the publications section it is possible to find the whole list of abstracts and posters presented within the field of NEWELY
NEWELY participates in the ICSC 2022
Last November, in Marseille, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) represented the project NEWELY at the 10th International Conference on Systems and Control (ICSC 2022).
Panda, Ronit Kumar (CEA) presented the abstract entitled “Performance Evaluation of the Anion Exchange Membrane Based Water Electrolysis (I)”, showing the analysis results on the role of addition of KOH and its overall impact on the behavior of MEA.
In the publications section of the website, it is possible to read and download the abstract.
This conference provides the opportunity for worldwide researchers and practitioners to share together the latest developments and new trends in systems and control. For more information, visit the conference website.
In the publications section it is possible to find the whole list of abstracts and posters presented within the field of NEWELY!
NEWELY Project at Euromembrane 2022
Jan Zitka, of the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences (IMC-CAS) participated in the conference Euromembrane 2022, which took place in Sorrento (Naples, Italy) on 20-24 November 2022.
The researcher presented the work “Anion Exchange Membranes based on block copolymers for use in alkaline electrolysers“, which can be downloaded at this link.
The abstract has been published in the Book of Abstracts of the conference and can be downloaded from the publication sections.
In the publications section it is possible to find the whole list of abstracts posters presented within the field of NEWELY!
New scientific paper published in MDPI Membrane
The researchers of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, KIST (Korea) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (USA) published the analysis of the mechanical properties of membrane when measured in temperature-controlled water.
The article is entitled “Properties of Anion Exchange Membranes with a Focus on Water Electrolysis” and can be downloaded from the publication sections.
In the publications section it is possible to find the whole list of scientific articles written within the field of NEWELY!
Abstract:
Recently, alkaline membrane water electrolysis, in which membranes are in direct contact with water or alkaline solutions, has gained attention. This necessitates new approaches to membrane characterization. We show how the mechanical properties of FAA3, PiperION, Nafion 212 and reinforced FAA3-PK-75 and PiperION PI-15 change when stress–strain curves are measured in temperature-controlled water. Since membranes show dimensional changes when the temperature changes and, therefore, may experience stresses in the application, we investigated seven different membrane types to determine if they follow the expected spring-like behavior or show hysteresis. By using a very simple setup which can be implemented in most laboratories, we measured the “true hydroxide conductivity” of membranes in temperature-controlled water and found that PI-15 and mTPN had higher conductivity at 60 °C than Nafion 212. The same setup was used to monitor the alkaline stability of membranes, and it was found that stability decreased in the order mTPN > PiperION > FAA3. XPS analysis showed that FAA3 was degraded by the attack of hydroxide ions on the benzylic position. Water permeability was analyzed, and mTPN had approximately two times higher permeability than PiperION and 50% higher permeability than FAA3.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12100989
Read about it at this link.
NEWELY WINS THE BEST INNOVATION AWARD 2022!
The secret of success is in the membrane.
The project NEWELY won the Best Innovation Award 2022 of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership Joint Undertaking.
The Awards traditionally include three categories: Best Success Story, Best Innovation, and Best Outreach.
The Best Innovation is chosen by public vote and wishes to demonstrate how the collaboration between research, industry and policymakers can play a fundamental role in the energy transition to a decarbonised and greener world.
The proclamation and cerimony took place in Brussels, on 26th October, as part of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership Forum.
Read more about it at this link.
NEWELY AT THE EUROPEAN HYDROGEN WEEK
The European Hydrogen Week is the biggest annual event dedicated to hydrogen with a series of great events all around hydrogen.
The third edition of the event took place in Brussels, from 24 to 28 October 2022.
Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) attended the event and was present at the Exhibition, an important occasion to give visibility and showcase NEWELY project results!
FIFTH PROJECT MEETING
On the 15th of September 2022, the NEWELY’s consortium met again in person!
The event took place in Prague, and was hoster by the University of Chemistry and Technology Prague (UCTP).
The Consortium had the opportunity to strengthen relationship, exchange views and share the latest updates on the R&D activities for the prototype construction.
The activities on the membranes, cell and electrodes are proceeding and we expect interesting news in the next months.
Stay tuned!
NEWELY WILL BE PRESENTED AT EUROMEMBRANE 2022
The latest results on the NEWELY’s Anion Exchange Membrane are going to be presented by Jan Žitka at the Euromembrane Conference organized in Sorrento (Italy) on 20-24 November 2022. Dr. Žitka will present his work entitled “Anion Exchange Membranes based on block copolymers for use in alkaline electrolysers”.
Euromembrane 2022 is organised by the EMS (European Membrane Society) in 1982 and it celebrates this year its 40th anniversary.
At that time, the growing interest and the tremendous progress for Membrane Science and Technology suggested to better organize the scientific efforts at the European level.
The overall goal of the Society was (and is today) to promote education and communication among membrane scientists and technologists at the European and International level.
Download abstract at this link
3rd SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATION IN JOURNAL OF POWER SOURCES
We are proud to announce that the article “Optimization of the membrane electrode assembly for an alkaline water electrolyser based on the catalyst-coated membrane” has been published in open access on the Journal of Power Sources.
This study deals with the preparation and characterisation of catalyst-coated membranes for an alkaline water electrolysis process. For this purpose, a chloromethylated anion-selective block copolymer of styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene with 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane functional groups was used both as an alkaline polymer electrolyte membrane and as an ionomer binder. Non-PGM catalysts (platinum group metals), specifically NiCo2O4 and NiFe2O4, were used on the anode and cathode side of the membrane, respectively. Air-brush deposition or computer-controlled ultrasonic dispersion of the catalytic ink were used to deposit the catalyst layers. The influence of the composition of the catalyst layer on its stability and the resulting electrolysis cell performance was investigated under typical membrane alkaline water electrolysis conditions (1–15 wt.% KOH, 45 ◦C). The optimal catalyst-to-binder ratio in the catalyst layer was identified as 93/7 using a catalyst loading of 2.5 mg cm-2 on each side of the membrane. The membrane electrode assembly prepared under optimal conditions showed high stability over 140 h at a current density of 250 mA cm-2. At this current load, the cell exhibited a voltage of 2.025 ± 0.010 V. The increase in cell voltage observed during the stability test did not exceed 1 μV h-1.
For quotation: Plevovà, M., Hnàt, J., Zitka, J., Pavlovec, L., Otmar, O., Bouzek, K.
LECTURE ON IP MANAGEMENT BY DR. JELENA STOJADINOVIC
On May, 3 2022, Dr Jelena Stojadinovic hold a lecture on IP management in research projects. Her audience was composed by bachelor students participating to the Solar2Chem Project 4th workshop organized by the Tampere University, Finland.
Dr. Stojadinovic explained how to protect new ideas and basic knowledge deriving from innovation and research projects. The NEWELY case study was presented. Dr. Stojadinovic shared her experience on IP protection related to the novel membranes to be used in electrochemical cells.
For more information, click this link.
NEWELY PRESENTED AT MODVAL2022
NEWELY’s researchers Ronit Kumar Panda, Guillaume Serre, Pascal Schott, Yann Bultel presented at Modval2022 their modelling work on the NEWELY electrolyser.
The oral presentation detailed the need for modelling the AEM water electrolysis and the phenomenon associated with it. The context of lumped parameter based modelling approach and initial results obtained were discussed to better understand the performance of AEMWE.
To download the presentation, please click this link.
FOURTH PROJECT MEETING
2022 will be an exciting year for the NEWELY project! Most of the testing on the stack and the membranes will be concluded and new publications are expected by the end of the year.
The NEWELY’s Consortium met online today to align on the status of the activities and to plan the next steps to meet the targeted objectives.
A new editorial plan has been created to post monthly updates on the project and to keep our audience informed about the latest development of the project.
Stay tuned to discover more!
THE AEM HUB AND CLEAN HYDROGEN PARTNERSHIP DISCUSS ABOUT FUTURE SINERGIES FOR AEMEL R&D
On 28 Jan 2022, the three projects of the AEM Hub (ANIONE, CHANNEL and NEWELY) got together with the Clean Hydrogen JU experts to discuss the progress and challenges of the projects in the first two years and identify synergies and solutions for the last phase of the projects. The workshop kicked off with a short presentation from each of the project Coordinators who presented the status and challenges faced.
The main challenges identified are:
- Concentrations of KOH between 0 and 1 M were studied in the project having influence on performance and lifetime. The ideal concentration depends on the system and still needs to be identified and its effect needs to be better understood;
- The various AEM membranes and ionomers are varying in chemical and thermal stability;
- Need for harmonized procedures and baseline materials to properly access and compare the progress of alternative materials:
- Progress of the technology is a compromise between performance and durability.
The synergies that are planned to be exploited during 2022 are:
- Revision and update of the joint testing protocols;
- Use of the same cell for testing in the 3 projects;
- Investigate possibility of round robin testing;
- Writing of a joint publication on the common knowledge generated.
- The joint effort done by the three projects in the AEM Hub is expected to bring new fruitful results during 2022.
Stay tuned for updates!
NEWELY & the AEM HUB PARTICIPATE AT FCH JU PROGRAMME REVIEW DAY
The NEWELY Project together with its siblings CHANNEL and the ANIONE projects took part to the panel session on Next Generation Electrolyzers at the Programme Review Days 2021. The PRDs have been organized by FCH JU as the last event of the European Hydrogen Week.
The three projects form the AEM Hub, joining forces to develop testing standard and common language for advancing AEMEL research in Europe. The three projects are working to demonstrate 2 kW AEM WE stack prototypes operating at high pressure for green hydrogen production.
The three projects will meet online in joint workshop at the end of January to further advance their common activities on testing protocols.
NEWELY WILL BE PRESENTED AT FCH JU PROGRAMME REVIEW DAYS
On December 2 at 2.30 pm, our coordinator Aldo Gago will present the progress of the NEWELY project in the Panel Session on “Next generation electrolysers” at the FCH JU Programme Review Days.
This two-days event will kick-close the EU Hydrogen week and, following the tradition of the past 11 years, will provide an excellent visibility platform for more than 60 projects currently on-going under FCH JU.
More than 53 selected projects and initiatives will have the opportunity to present their progress, obtain feedback, exchange ideas and best practices on the latest technological developments in the sector. Throughout the entire event we will also make available for download scientific posters for all FCH JU funded projects.
Join us on 2 and 3 December to hear Europe’s leading hydrogen projects and discover updates about the technology!
KIST RESEARCHER MALIKAH NAJIBAH WINS BEST POSTER AWARD @ICEA 2021
Congratulation to our young researcher Malikah Najibah that won the best poster price (silver) for the poster presented at the ICAE Conference in Jeju, Korea. She presented her research conducted with the team at KIST on “Pore-Filling PBI Nanofiber Mats Using Bromoalkyl-Tethered Precursor Polymer with a Covalently Bonded Interface for use in Water Electrolysers”.
The ICAE 2021 Award is intended as an acknowledgement and recognition for scientists who have contributed to the development of the electromaterials industry with their research and case studies.
The award have been presented at the ICAE 2021 conference in Korea.
2nd SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATION IN JOURNAL OF MEMBRANE SCIENCE
We are pleased to announce that the open access version of the article PBI nanofiber mat-reinforced anion exchange membranes with covalently linked interfaces for use in water electrolysers is now available online.
In this work, we approach the issue of AEM reinforcing by pore filling polybenzimidazole nanofiber mats with the bromomethylated precursor of mTPN, an ultra-stable AEM material. During drying, a covalent interaction between support (PBI amine groups) and matrix (-CH2Br) is established. After quaternization, the optimized PBI/mTPN-50.120 composite membrane still shows a high conductivity of 62 mS cm−1, but 37% reduced length swelling in comparison to the non-reinforced membrane. Tensile strength and Young’s modulus increase 17% and 56% to 49 MPa and 680 MPa, respectively. In an electrolyser, a stable voltage of 1.98V at 0.25 A cm−2 was achieved, and no change in membrane resistance was observed over the test time of 200 h (50 °C, 1 M KOH, catalysts based on Ni/Fe and Mo).
For quotation: Najibah, M., Tsoy, E., Khalid, H., Chen, Y., Li, Q., Bae, C., … & Henkensmeier, D. (2021). PBI nanofiber mat-reinforced anion exchange membranes with covalently linked interfaces for use in water electrolysers. Journal of Membrane Science, 119832.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2021.119832Get
FCH JU WEBINAR ON AEMEL
The NEWELY project will participate to the webinar on Anion Exchange Membrane Electrolysers organized by FCH JU. The webinar is scheduled for Tuesday 6 July, 2021 | 14:00 – 15:30.
Since 2020 the FCH JU has supported three cutting-edge projects on this research field: ANIONE, CHANNEL and NEWELY.
The projects will be showcasing their targets, achievements and remaining challenges in developing 2kW prototypes of AEMEL. This will be followed by a discussion on the steps needed to upscale AEMEL including EU support.
Registration is required to join the webinar.
Please register at this link.
THIRD PROJECT MEETING
The NEWELY’s consortium has met online to share the latest updates on the R&D activities for the prototype construction.
There are innovations deriving from the activities on the membranes, cell and electrodes. These will make NEWELY’ s a promising project for the uptake of Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysers.
More information will be posted in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEWELY
The NEWELY Project has just entered the second project year. We expect a year full of activities that will bring NEWELY a step further in the development of the prototype for next generation of water electrolyser based on AEMs.
The third project meeting is scheduled for the 26th of February 2021. The Consortium will share updates on the research activities and the preliminary test results on the membranes and electrodes.
Keep following to know more!
NEW SCIENTIFIC PAPER: AEM STATE OF THE ART AND REQUIREMENTS
The scientific paper “Overview: State-of-the art commercial membranes for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis” has been published on the last issue (31 July 2020) of the Journal of Electrochemical Energy Conversion and Storage.
The paper presents target values and technical requirements for Anion Exchange Membranes (AEMs), discusses the chemical structures involved and the related degradation pathways, and gives an overview over the most prominent and promising commercial AEMs (Fumatech Fumasep® FAA3, Tokuyama A201, Ionomr Aemion™, Dioxide materials Sustainion®, and membranes commercialized by Orion Polymer), and reviews their properties and performances of water electrolyzers using these membranes.
You can find the article at https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4047963
NEWELY ON TECHNICAL WEEKLY
The University of Chemistry and Technology of Prague has published an article in Technical Weekly, a journal dedicated to new trends in technology & development. NEWELY has been described as a promising technology for the uptake of hydrogen as an energy vector that can boost the European journey to decarbonization.
Part of the article is accessible online and the pdf version is available to the website of UCT Prague. (Czech)
Click the links to discover more!
NEWELY SOCIAL MEDIA
NEWELY’s social media are now active.
Follow us on Twitter @NewelyProject and on LinkedIn @ NEWELY Project
We will share updates on the NEWELY’s project as well as the most recent news and information on the development of Anion Exchange Water Electrolysers.
NEWELY WEBSITE ONLINE
The NEWELY’s official website is now online.
The website is the main communication channel for the project. Here you will find all the information, updates, documents and publications related to the NEWELY project.
Stay tuned!
NEWELY ON ZENODO
The NEWELY Consortium takes part to the Open Research Data Pilot encouraged by the EU Commission.
The Consortium has drafted a Data Management Plan for defining internal rules for making data FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable). Discover more on NEWELY’s community on Zenodo:
KICK-OFF MEETING
The NEWELY project has been officially kicked-off. The eleven partners of the Consortium met in Stuttgart at DLR to present their roles and activities in the project.
The NEWELY Consortium is ready to start the journey that will lead to the creation of the Next Generation of Water Electrolysers.
Follow our journey on this website!
This project has received funding from the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen 2 Joint Undertaking (now Clean Hydrogen Partnership) under Grant Agreement No 875118. This Joint Undertaking receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program, Hydrogen Europe and Hydrogen Europe Research
Project Coordinator
Dr. Aldo Gago
Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft unnd Raumfahrt (DLR)
Tel.: +49 711 6862 – 8090
Email: aldo.gago@dlr.de
Project Manager
Regine Reissner
Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft unnd Raumfahrt (DLR)
Tel.: +49 711 6862-394
Email: regine.reissner@dlr.de
Communication Manager
Ilaria Alberti
Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK)
Tel.: +39 0461 314442
Email: ialberti@fbk.eu
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