The goal of NewHydrogen’s sponsored research at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) is to lower the cost of green hydrogen by systematically reducing the cost and increasing the performance of critical components of hydrogen generators. These electrolyzers split water into oxygen and hydrogen and currently rely on rare materials such as iridium and platinum, which account for a substantial portion of the cost.
In 2021, researchers at UCLA funded by NewHydrogen developed a low-cost oxygen catalyst that does not use expensive iridium and significantly improved the performance of PEM electrolyzers. Also developed were hydrogen catalysts that use an order of magnitude less platinum or no platinum at all.
The company is currently in the stage of incorporating its novel oxygen and hydrogen catalysts into a complete prototype electrolyzer. The agreement expands its technology focus to include additional component innovations related to gas diffusion layer, ion exchange membrane, and catalyst layer. The company’s ultimate goal is to develop a low-cost and high-performance electrolyzer consisting of multiple breakthrough components.
“We are very pleased to broaden our green hydrogen research program at UCLA with Dr. Huang and her team, in whom we have a high level of confidence,” said Dr. David Lee, CEO of NewHydrogen. “We look forward to seeing more achievements to drastically reduce the cost of producing green hydrogen as a result of expanding the sponsored research program.”
