Abingdon company unveils electrolyser coating technology to help transform hydrogen industry

Abingdon company unveils evolutionary electrolyser coating technology to help transform hydrogen industry

Oxford nanoSystems (OnS), an innovative materials technology company based in Abingdon, is poised to transform the green hydrogen industry with its revolutionary electrolyser coating technology. The breakthrough OnS coating, called nanoFLUX, enables a significant level of performance and cost reduction for hydrogen electrolysers.

The significance of OnS’s breakthrough cannot be overstated, particularly in light of the urgent need for sustainable energy solutions. Promising performance at a fraction of the cost of existing coatings, OnS’s nanoFLUX solution addresses the critical challenge of making green hydrogen competitive against fossil fuels.

This comes at a significant time as the US Department of Energy set the ambitious target in 2021 to reduce the cost of clean hydrogen by 80% to $1 per 1 kilogram in 1 decade. By leveraging the OnS coating, alkaline electrolysers can increase hydrogen production capacity by over 50% and lower the cost of green hydrogen by up to 20%.

This creates an immense opportunity for substantial cost savings in green hydrogen production, paving the way for a greener and more sustainable future. An independent assessment conducted by E4Tech, has confirmed the cost-benefit advantage provided by the OnS’ coating for alkaline electrolysis compared to other options in the market.

The green hydrogen industry is poised for exponential growth, with forecasts indicating a projected installed capacity of over 100GW by 2030, representing a 1000% increase within a decade. OnS is at the forefront of driving this transformation by offering a solution which provides a huge leap towards meeting the US Department of Energy’s Earthshot Hydrogen target.

The success of OnS’ breakthrough coating technology has the potential to revolutionise the green hydrogen industry and contribute significantly to global efforts in mitigating the impacts of climate change.

OnS is a UK-based materials technology business specialising in advanced and highly innovative coating technologies. Founded in 2012 by world renowned scientists, OnS has invested over ten years in developing and optimising its groundbreaking coating technologies, earning the support of successful investors from the Oxford technology community.

This new technology will play a vital role in the race to net-zero by decarbonising critical sectors such as transportation, heavy industry, and aviation. By increasing the electrical current that flows through the system under normal operating conditions, the OnS coating significantly increases the rate of hydrogen production that can be achieved by an alkaline electrolyser of a given size. The resulting increase in production capacity lowers the capex cost of alkaline electrolysers by over 50% relative to existing technologies. This very substantially reduces the cost of producing green hydrogen.

By enhancing energy conversion and transfer systems, OnS enables the development of smaller, lighter, and more efficient electrolysers and heat exchangers at a lower cost. OnS has developed an innovative coating technology that can be applied to alkaline electrolyser electrodes using a highly scalable and cost-effective process.

The science behind the OnS coating lies in its core technology, nanoFLUX. This advanced metallic-alloy coating employs a unique dendritic structure, forming a network of microcavities on the substrate’s surface. These microcavities significantly increase the sites available for hydrogen bubble formation, enabling smaller bubbles to be generated and released at a faster rate.

As a result, the resistance and losses caused by the buildup of bubbles are significantly reduced, enhancing the overall efficiency of the electrolysis process. Bubble release is critical because the electrochemistry reaction takes place where the liquid electrolyte is in contact with the solid electrode. Prior to their release from the electrode surface, gas bubbles form an insulating layer between solid and liquid, reducing the effective size of the electrode.

The nanoFLUX coating has been combined with a proprietary non-PGM catalyst that activates that hydrogen generation reaction in alkaline electrolysers. In addition to these novel properties, nanoFLUX also provides a high surface area, an essential characteristic for the electro-catalytic processes that occur within the electrolyser.

Producing hydrogen using curtailed energy from renewable sources maximises their output, side stepping some of the perceived short-comings of renewable energy. Using nanoFLUX, the curtailed energy is stored for later use as a clean, versatile fuel.