Zero-dimensional electrochemical modeling of a market-ready anion exchange membrane electrolyzer

Anion exchange membrane water electrolysis is considered one of the most promising technological solutions for producing clean hydrogen. This technology has been demonstrated to be efficient, scalable, and cost-effective, with the benefit of not requiring platinum-group metals. However, there is a research gap in developing a robust electrochemical model of a market-ready anion exchange membrane electrolyzer for use in process and system simulations. Therefore, this study presents a zero-dimensional electrochemical anion exchange membrane-electrolyzer stack model. A commercial 2.3 kW<inf>el</inf> stack is used to acquire experimental data. This data is then utilized to validate the model, particularly through comparisons of the experimental polarization curve from 1.53 V at 0.08 A/cm² to 1.87 V at 0.84 A/cm²and evaluations of the resultant cell efficiencies. The model accurately reproduces the experimental voltage-current relationship (R² ≥ 0.97). A subsequent parameter analysis, accounting for the given boundary conditions, shows that the charge transfer coefficient and electrolyte concentration significantly affect electrolysis performance, especially at the maximum current density investigated. The development of an electrochemical model for a market-ready anion exchange membrane electrolyzer, along with the analysis of performance affecting process parameters, contributes to future investigations into process simulation, system design, and scaling towards smart energy conversion.

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This is an open access article under the CC BY license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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