Researchers developed a cost-effective and efficient rival for platinum
A challenge that comes with the increased use of renewable energy is how to store electric energy.
Platinum has traditionally been used as the electrocatalyst in electrolysers that store electric energy as chemical compounds.
However, platinum is a rare and expensive metal. Now Aalto University researchers have succeeded in developing a substitute to it that is cheap and effective.
"We developed an electrocatalyst that is made of iron and carbon. Now the same efficiency that was achieved with platinum can be obtained with a less expensive material. Nearly 40 per cent of the material costs of energy storage with an electrolyser come from the electrocatalyst", says senior scientist Tanja Kallio.
The findings have just been published in the scientific journal Angewandte Chemie on 12.2.2015.
Losses decrease
The manufacturing process has been developed in cooperation with a research group led by Professor Esko Kauppinen from Aalto University School of Science. The carbon nanotube the group developed conducts electricity extremely well and serves as the support, while the now added only single carbon layer covered iron functions as the catalyst. The manufacturing process has a single stage.
In the manufacturing phase, the iron is covered with graphene.
"The method has been altered to make the electro catalyst very active. By active, we refer to the small amount of energy needed to store electric energy as hydrogen. This reduces the losses caused by chemical storage and the process is economically viable."
The research was conducted at the Aalto University School of Chemical Technology in groups led by Professor Kari Laasonen and Senior scientist Tanja Kallio in cooperation with Professor Esko Kauppinen. The research has been funded by the Aalto University AEF Programme (Aalto Energy Efficiency Research Programme).
Further information
Senior scientist Tanja Kallio
tanja.kallio@aalto.fi
tel. +358 50 5637 567
Professor Kari Laasonen
kari.laasonen@aalto.fi
tel. +358 40 5570044
Read more news
Turning bobbin lace into shape-shifting textiles
Researchers have developed textile structures based on bobbin lace making that can change their shape in response to changes in their environment. The research combines a traditional handicraft technique with active materials and computer modelling.
Hydrogen economy moves at the speed of its slowest link
Listen to the entire first season of the BalticSeaH2 Hydrogen Valley Podcast, where eight episodes explore the bottlenecks of hydrogen economy.
Prototyping and Validation Grant: WeatherSens AI
Three Aalto founders are using off-the-shelf drones and an AI physics model to measure the weather where no station stands. First they had to learn when not to sell.