The Catalonia Institute for Power Analysis (IREC) has opened a brand new pilot manufacturing line that makes use of 3D printing to supply ceramic units for renewable hydrogen purposes. The ability, known as Merce Lab, manufactures stable oxide cells (SOCs) that may perform as each gasoline cells and electrolyzers. The pilot line acquired funding from H2B2 as a part of the €25 million Tecnopropia undertaking, with an preliminary funding of €2 million.
The 3D printing method presents a number of manufacturing benefits over conventional strategies. The method reduces materials consumption and creates lighter, extra compact units with larger vitality density. In keeping with Marc Torrell, head of Merce Lab at IREC, “This facility positions us as pioneers in SOC manufacturing at a world scale,” including that “it is a disruptive method to manufacturing processes and efficiency of ceramic-based units, opening the door to new SOC methods for purposes that beforehand couldn’t meet desired necessities, equivalent to maritime or aviation transport.”
The present pilot line has a producing capability of roughly 2 MW per 12 months and might be scaled up as wanted. The SOC units obtain 4 occasions the ability density of current business applied sciences at an estimated price of €800/kW. IREC initiatives this might scale back hydrogen manufacturing prices to beneath €4/kg, whereas the ceramic-based cells can save as much as 25% of the vitality required for hydrogen technology in comparison with polymer-based alternate options.
The manufacturing course of covers 5 most important phases: ink preparation, cell manufacturing, interconnector manufacturing, element meeting, and ultimate gadget validation. IREC has established partnerships with a number of trade corporations together with H2B2, 3Dceram, AMES, and Viver Clear Tech to speed up expertise growth. The institute plans to create a spin-off firm known as Oxhyd Power to commercialize the SOC gasoline cell expertise.
Supply: fuelcellsworks.com
